


Brand New Day

by CharacterFiction



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-19
Updated: 2017-08-11
Packaged: 2018-09-25 16:17:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 12
Words: 154,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9828845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CharacterFiction/pseuds/CharacterFiction
Summary: Max Caulfield's life had been as normal as she could have hoped for. When she suddenly finds herself with a new power and forcibly shoved into the path of Nathan Prescott, she'll have to use everything she has at her disposal to solve a new mystery. Luckily, she has friends to help her along the way.





	1. Chapter 01

** Chapter 01 **

The howling wind and booming thunder forces Max into consciousness and she finds herself lying on the ground in an unfamiliar location. She huddles immediately into herself as she looks around confused as to how she got here.

The trunks of the trees crack dangerously and she feels herself lift slightly off the ground. Crawling to a nearby tree that seems more stable, she clutches onto it to keep herself from being blown away.

Fighting to see against the flying dirt and debris, she manages a peek in-between the trees and freezes in terror. There in front of her is massive tornado whirling violently pulling in animals, cars, and anything else unfortunate enough to fall into its grasp. Even the ocean it spins on top of is being sucked in creating a terrifying force to behold.

Dim light from a lighthouse – a familiar one from her childhood – catches her attention. Swallowing, Max makes a snap decision to head towards it seeing that it appears to be the only shelter. She trudges up the hill against the wind keeping as much of a lookout for flying debris as she could. Near the top, she sees the terrible tornado in its full fury and her vision is filled with the destruction around the area.

She quickens her pace towards the lighthouse and, reaching it, she tries to open the door only to find it locked. Slumping against the door in a wail, she tries to keep her eyes away from the tornado which will soon devour her.

That is when, in the darkness and flying destruction, a tiny but brilliant blue orb slowly heads her way.

Surprised, Max stares waiting for it to come closer. Nearer to her face, she sees that the orb is actually some kind of blue glowing butterfly. It somehow managed to fly against the tremendous force of the tornado and seemed as if it had sought her out.

The tiny thing lands against her arm. Max’s eyes widen in horror when the butterfly suddenly melds into her skin and disappears inside. She quickly swipes and scratches at the area where it was, but futilely as she could no longer reach it.

She freezes feeling some sort of burning sensation in the area of her arm where the butterfly melded in. The burning sensation slowly moves from her arm to her shoulder then switches direction towards her chest.

Max shouts and cries as the pain becomes overwhelming. She pounds her fists at the areas where the burning sensation moves but it continues its path unfazed. When the sensation reaches her chest, it’s as if her heart stopped and she chokes.

The sound of cracking and the falling of debris from above alert her to something else wrong. She looks up to see the lighthouse collapsing. The top of the building tips over and drops towards her. Max screams seeing that this is the end.

And that’s when she wakes up.

She looks around rapidly as she tries to reorient herself. The familiar voice of her photography teacher, Mr. Jefferson, steadily filters in along with the familiar desks, chairs, camera equipment, and dusty smell of her photography class.

Clutching at her chest, she breathes an unsteady sigh of relief feeling everything is normal. The confusion slowly leaves her as she remembers where she is. The terrible scene she had witnessed had merely been a dream.

This knowledge does much to quell her panic, though its lingering effect can be seen in her still quivering hands. Reaching for her familiar Polaroid camera, Max grips it as though she is holding onto a spiritual charm.

Max eyes the various scenes in her cramped class room, though she couldn’t find it within her capability to focus. Her vision remains blurry and her thoughts jumbled. As the tight feeling in her throat loosens, Max forcefully coughs to relieve the pressure build-up quicker.

“And I believe someone just volunteered to answer the question.” Her eyes widen and lock onto those of her teacher who returns her stare pointedly. “Well, Max? Can you tell us the name of the first photograph?”

She knows the answer to this. Max racks her brain quickly trying to remember the answer, but it only comes in small, broken parts. The feeling of eyes, especially that of Mr. Jefferson’s, on her made her face feel hot and her head ache from embarrassment.

“It…was, I think, The Window Over The Grass?”

A small snicker catches her attention and Max glances over to see Victoria Chase not too subtly hiding a sardonic grin behind her hands as she looks coldly back at Max.

“Nice try, Max.” Mr. Jefferson nods sympathetically. “You came close. The actual title is ‘View from the Window at Le Gras’. A photograph by a French artist named Nicéphore Niépce, it is widely accepted as the first or, at least, the oldest surviving photograph. I note that because reality is that there were many before him. In the 1700s-“

The moment passes and Max heaves a relieved sigh from within. She is greatly embarrassed, but in a way, the embarrassing moment helps to relieve the last of the effects from her dream.

Breathing more easily now, she hazards another glance at Victoria. The fashionable blonde has returned her attention to Mr. Jefferson and no longer pays any to Max to her vast relief.

She can hardly understand why exactly Victoria picks on her – something she had done since the first week Max had arrived at Blackwell. Nearly every day, Victoria is quick to make a passing remark, call her out publicly to point out whatever shameful quirk she is exposing that particularly day, or perhaps she merely sneers as she passes her in the hallway.

And for the life of her, Max can’t understand why.

The blonde Vortex Club queen is as much a mystery as her math class and has proven equally hopeless to understand. So she puts it aside to move on while praying Victoria eventually finds something else to do.

The school bell rings giving the signal for everyone to start packing. Mr. Jefferson, experienced with the process, begins giving reminders.

“Everyone, please remember the ‘Everyday Heroes’ contest. I’m still looking for entries from Stella, Alyssa, Max, and Taylor, so get it together, ladies. Remember the prize is a trip to San Francisco where you’ll be gushed about by the art world. It would be a fantastic start to your potential career, so please get it together!”

Max flinches at the reminder of how late she is with her own entry, but she really is trying. San Francisco sounds so romantic and she really wants to go there – ‘Everyday Heroes’ contest or no.

She simply can’t come up with a photograph she likes, though. She tried too, but nothing seems to come to mind. Shaking her head, she picks up her own things taking extra care as she tuck her camera into her bag. Afterwards, she walks over to Kate Marsh – one of the few friends she has at Blackwell.

“Hey Kate, how are you?”

“Hey Max.” The girl responds lethargically. Her eyes lack focus and shows signs of fatigue. “I’m pretty good.”

“Are you up for tea later?”

She averts her eyes. “Maybe. I’ll see how I’m feeling later.”

Nodding, though feeling as if it was a canned response, Max bids her good-bye. As she turns to leave the classroom, she catches Victoria gathering her own things and gazes longingly at some of the things she picks up.

A beautiful looking DSLR along with a designer case of lenses is unceremoniously shoved into Victoria’s bag then her hands reach towards a stylish looking smartphone and tablet. A glint of light attracts Max’s eyes onto Victoria’s clothes.

Around her neck, a dazzling set of pearls lies against a sweater with a fashionable collar nestled by a stylish dark skirt. Victoria’s blemish-free skin is complemented and accentuated by her clothes and the pearls helped the image though Max imagines it would have merely been tacky on most anyone else.

Max’s eyes linger a bit more on the beautiful pearls before it suddenly occurs to her that Victoria has stopped moving. And her body is facing towards Max.

Her eyes shoot up and she pales as Victoria’s cold eyes bore directly into hers. Max freezes not knowing if she should apologize or merely look away. As she fumbles trying to think of something, Victoria picks up her bag and walks away.

Deliberately waiting in spot for a minute or two hoping that she won’t encounter Victoria outside of class, Max finally takes her own leave just barely dodging Mr. Jefferson as he busily fills out some kind of paperwork.

Outside the classroom, Max stares down the hallway noting the main faces she recognizes. Courtney, one of Victoria’s friends, is chatting with Taylor. Alyssa is texting besides Evan. A number of bullies and their victims line along the lockers. She briefly thinks of looking another friend, Warren, to chat with, but Max quickly puts it away.

Too many things had happened. That terrible dream and Victoria. She just wants to go back to her dorm and take a nap.

Max walks down the hallway intending to leave the school, but as she hits the intersection leading to the exit, her eyes glance the bathroom and she decides to make a stop to wash her face. Inside the dimly lit and damp room, she gives her face a quick splash and thinks of the Everyday Heroes contest.

Mr. Jefferson has been putting real pressure on everyone to make an entry and he seemed especially keen on Max doing so. He frequently insists she is talented and often crows of her ‘gift’ much to her embarrassment, though why is among the many mysteries that she can’t understand. To her eyes, many of her photos lack any real complexities and often seem simple and nondescript.

Reaching into her bag, she takes a photo out which she had recently shot of her standing in front of many selfies she has taken over time. Max, for a time, had thought it was her best photo and had intended to enter it as an entry, but there are times when she wonders if there is any real art in it. She stares at the photo blankly trying to come up with an emotion to describe how she feels and couldn’t come up with a real answer. Typical.

That bathroom door opens prompting Max to look around. She freezes when Victoria steps in and looks straight at her. The blonde glares at Max for a moment.

“See something you like?” Max didn’t know how to respond, so she didn’t. “I asked if you see something you like? This is the second time you’re staring at me. You have a problem, you little bitch?”

Victoria rapidly walks forward reaching out her hand. Max tries to back away, but the blonde grabs her jacket stopping her. She leans in until their faces were close enough to feel each others’ breaths and stares coldly into Max’s eyes.

“I don’t like the way you keep looking at me. Stop it. Now.”

“Victoria, I…I just…”

She is interrupted by the sound of the door opening. Both their attention turns towards the door and Max is surprised to see a boy, Nathan Prescott, step in. He pauses inside at the sight of them.

Victoria’s eyes widen slightly at the sight of him, but soften afterwards. Max is reminded that the two are actually friends.

“Nate, you have the wrong bathroom. You might want to head out.”

“I’m meeting someone.” He twitches nervously and his eyes are dilated. He tries to smile at her though it looks forced. “You should get out of here, Victoria, cause things are going to go down. What the hell are you doing anyway? Beating someone up?”

“I came in here to touch up my make-up.” Victoria looks him over. “What is wrong with you? You’re sweating like crazy.”

Sweat isn’t the only thing off about Nathan. His body twitches consistently, his fists clench and unclench repeatedly, and his skin is pale. He fingers his jacket as if hiding something in there. Victoria notices this and lets go of Max’s jacket to face Nathan. Max backs away from the two confused as to what is happening.

“Don’t worry about it.” Nathan says. “Just get out while you can, Victoria. I’m telling you. It’s for your own good. Bring that girl with you too.”

“Nate, talk to me. What’s going on?”

He hesitates slightly as if wondering if he should really tell her, but ultimately decides against it. “It’s nothing. Just listen to me. Go. Please.”

Victoria stays still ignoring his command. Seeing this, Nathan lets out a frustrated sigh running his hand through his hair. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out something. Both Max and Victoria freezes realizing it’s a handgun.

“There? You get it now? Again, go now, Victoria.”

“Nathan, what the fuck?” Victoria’s voice had taken on a tinge of panic. “Put that shit away _right now_. We’re leaving – both of us. We’ll go somewhere and talk about this, okay?”

“Christ, Victoria, I just showed you a gun and you’re still ignoring me! What the fuck do I have to do? I’m telling you this for your own safety and you won’t goddamn listen!”

Max lets out a terrified squeal as Nathan swings the gun around carelessly. He is behaving extremely erratically and his sweating is getting worse. Either something has him scared or he is high enough to be losing his composure. Perhaps even both.

Her head pounds and her body weaken. She is paralyzed with terror. She looks to Victoria hoping the blonde knows what to do only to deflate upon seeing that she appears equally terrified.

“Nate, stop it!” Victoria shouts. “You’re going to shoot somebody! Stop it now!”

“I have things under control, okay? You’re the one making everything hard! Just get out now!”

The panic in Victoria’s voice and their escalating argument raises Max’s fears. Out of her depth with things going far too fast for her to think properly, her first thought is to simply run. Grab Victoria then run as fast and as far as possible. Problem is that her way is blocked by Nathan.

She desperately wishes that somebody – anybody – would come in and save them from this.

“Nathan, calm down. Here, just let me have that.” Victoria walks over and grabs the gun. “Give it to me. I promise it’ll be better.”

Nathan startles at her bold action and immediately tries to block her. Victoria fights back refusing to let go and keeps trying to persuade Nathan to release it. As they struggle, he forcefully twists Victoria around trying to push her towards the door to leave even as Victoria pushes back demanding he stop.

Max notices none of this. Her eyes are glued to the gun and she realizes just how often their fingers are brushing near the trigger. Nathan’s hand had gone right over it several times. Worse of all, the gun is aimed point blank at Victoria’s chest. If it goes off…if it goes off…

She feels herself hit the wall and only then realized she had been backing away. She looks around herself and her eyes land on a number of items. A bucket, a mop, the fire alarm. An idea suddenly comes to her. Gathering as much courage as she could, Max lifts up a yellow caution sign from behind a stall and notes its weight. If…if she manages to hit Nathan with this, both she and Victoria can make their escape.

Not bothering to worry about the details of that quick plan, Max picks up the sign and holds it tightly. She looks around the stall at the two still fighting. Feeling he is distracted, Max takes a deep breath and rushes out cocking the sign to swing at Nathan with all her might.

It might have worked. It might have. However, Victoria suddenly turns her eyes to Max in surprise and releases her grip on the gun. This, in turn, alerts Nathan that something is behind him. Just as Max closes in on him, he quickly swings the gun around and shoots blindly. The bullet hits directly in her chest.

Max felt a pain unlike any she ever felt in her life and sheer force of the impact sends her sprawling backwards. She crashes to the floor and chokes as blood rises in her throat obstructing her breathing. In her peripheral, she notices Victoria’s horrified face and Nathan dropping the gun in shock.

Outside of the pain, which is slowly disappearing, Max notes with surprise how calm she is. The world is blurring heavily and the faces of the others seem to blend together in a bright mist that slowly takes over her vision. Confused, Max decides to shut her eyes against the brightness.

And that’s when she wakes up.

Her head shoots up as she breathes rapidly trying to still her panic. Once again, she finds herself disoriented and confused, but the familiarity of the scene helps to quickly reoriented herself. Her eyes move back and forth rapidly before she realizes that she is in Mr. Jefferson’s class.

Bile rises to her throat and she fights to hold herself from vomiting in front of the entire class. Her eyes burn and tear up as the horrid memories of what happened come back to her. The need to question her sanity is at the forefront of her mind.

What in the world happened? Did she have some kind of monstrous dream followed by a second equally horrible dream? Both had been so awful and realistic, though. She can still recall the snapping of the wind as it tries to fling her around, the humiliation at Victoria’s hands, the paralysis as Nathan loses it. How could it all have been fake?

Yet what other answer could there be?

Her throat feels tight and she struggles to breathe. She forcefully coughs and grasp at her throat trying to breathe easier.

“And I believe someone just volunteered to answer the question. Well, Max? Can you tell us the name of the first photograph?”

For a moment, Max stares disbelievingly at Mr. Jefferson as the question stirs up memories.

“It’s…‘View from the Window at Le Gras’ by Nicéphore Niépce.”

“Wonderful answer, Max! You’ve been doing your research!” Mr. Jefferson looks pleased. “This is what I like to see class and the gifted Max Caulfield doesn’t disappoint! Now, class, while this is widely recognized as-“

A coincidence. It’s just a coincidence that he asked the same question. It has to be. Max pinches herself and winces at the pain which gives her a bit of relief afterwards. She looks around the room and, upon seeing Victoria looking the same as usual, lets out a relieved sigh.

No, definitely just a dream.

The school bell rings and all the students begin packing. Mr. Jefferson backs up to the front of the class trying to squeeze in a reminder as everyone tries to leave quickly.

“All of you, don’t forget about the ‘Everyday Heroes’ contest. I’m still looking for entries from Stella, Alyssa, Taylor, and, of course, Max. Don’t disappointment me, ladies. As none of you should forget, the prize is a trip to San Francisco where your photo will be viewed and it can help kickstart a career. So please put some effort into it!”

Max, feeling her stomach doing flip flops and her head splitting open, quickly and haphazardly gathers her things. She lifts her bag and tries to make her way out.

“Hold on there, Max Caulfield! Don’t think you can leave without us having a talk!”

Max freeze at the call and turns to look at Mr. Jefferson meekly. She trudges over to him and stands to attention, though refusing to meet his eyes.

“I think you know what this is about. The Everyday Heroes contest, of course. Have you made any progress on it?”

“I…I’m trying, Mr. Jefferson. I want to and I will, but it’s just that things have been busy. I just need a bit more time to get the shot I want.”

“Max, we’ve talked about this. You are a talented young woman and, today, I think I got yet another inkling of that talent trying to shine through. It’s alright to want something good, something great, for an important contest, but, you know, life won’t wait for anyone. If you’re keep holding off, you might find you’ll run out of time before you know it.”

“I know. I know, Mr. Jefferson. I’ll get a photo to you. I promise.”

He nods in dismissal and she turns to walk away only to meet the condescending eyes of Victoria. Hesitating a moment before continuing past the blonde who looks as if she intends to converse with Mr. Jefferson, Max quickly walks down the hallway ignoring everything around her.

When she reaches the intersection, she pauses.

In her heart of hearts, she wanted to turn towards the exit and run to her dorm where she’ll feel some sense of security from this madness she’s experiencing. Her mind, though, halts her steps with an intense feeling of shame.

Since she’s gotten to Blackwell, she had felt like an outcast and many things seem to work to enforce that view. How would it look – not just to others but even to herself – if she were to suddenly start avoiding the bathroom because she had some bad dreams? She’s an adult now, not a child anymore.

So convincing herself that there is nothing to be afraid of, Max slowly step towards the bathroom. Inside, she finds a similarly dimly lit and damp area. Walking to the center and standing still, she wonders to herself what’s next. Her mind seems to go blank and the question of her sanity comes back to her.

“See, Max?” She mutters to herself. “You’re out of your mind. There’s nothing to worry about.”

On autopilot, she takes out her camera and takes a photo of her reflection in the mirror. When the photo comes out, she waits for it to develop then stare at the shot. A surprisingly good one wherein the shadows and background seem to reveal her inner turmoil. Her face is covered by a bright flash and the camera itself. She looks up at the mirror and at her reflection. Briefly, she feels lost.

The moment disappears when she hears the sound of footsteps. Not even knowing for sure if the person is coming into the bathroom or not, her feet nonetheless moves before she even consciously does so. Max quickly jumps behind the end stall and cowers behind the yellow caution sign feeling her heart quicken. The door opens and heavy footsteps come in.

There is a pause, then a voice says, “Alright, Nathan. No stress. It’s cool, you’re alright. Lets take this slow.”

Max pales and her heart quicken even further. She recognizes the voice as that of Nathan Prescott. Her dream…her dream is coming true!

She perishes the thought instantly. No, her dream is not real. There have been a surprising amount of coincidences so far but all the differences proves that her dream is not…some kind of premonition. For starters, the fact that Victoria did not come into the bathroom proves this beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Though she still can’t answer as to why in the hell Nathan Prescott is in the girls’ bathroom. He is muttering encouragement to himself as if he’s trying to hype himself up for some kind of dare. Max huddles closer into herself and tries to ignore him.

The sound of a door opening catches her attention again. Did Nathan leave?

“What do you want?”

“I hope you checked the perimeter as my step-ass would say. Now, lets talk bid’ness…”

It is a girl’s voice. Max immediately thought Victoria, but quickly realizes it sounded nothing like her. The tone and even style of speech is completely different.

Peeking her head out from the bottom part of the stall, she glances a girl with blue hair and raggy clothes before cowering back again. That’s definitely not Victoria. Instead, it looks like some kind of punk girl.

She tries to fight it, but her dream comes to her mind again. She remembers that Nathan said he was meeting someone when he told Victoria to leave. Is this who he was meeting?

“I got nothing for you.”

“Wrong. You got hella cash.”

“That’s my family, not me.”

“Oh boo hoo, poor little rich kid. I know you’ve been pumpin’ drugs and shit to little kids around here. I bet your respectable family would help me out if I went to them. Man, I can see the headlines now.”

Holy shit. _Holy shit_. This girl – whoever she is – is trying to **blackmail** Nathan. He has never been a very stable person to begin with, but this explains his extreme irrational behavior. He must be under a ton of pressure, especially if she’s threatening to go to his family.

The girl has no idea what she’s getting herself into. She has no idea that Nathan has a gun on him.

That thought sends a shock through Max as she remembers that he does have a gun. At least from her dream, but her dream has so far been uncomfortably prescient and she no longer feels as if she could ignore it. But what can she do?

Max glances at the caution sign she used to attack Nathan previously with disastrous results. From the periphery of her vision, though, she suddenly notices another object. A hammer.

She picks up the hammer feeling its weight in her hands. For a second, she wonders at the stupidity of this but that is pushed away as she also hears the argument between Nathan and the girl escalating. The word ‘bitch’ came in somewhere. It’s time to go into action if she is to stop Nathan this time.

She gets to her feet and tries to steady herself, but fear overwhelms her. She freezes to the spot unable to force her own body to move. She isn’t able to even breathe and her lungs make its needs known through a painful burning in her chest.

The yelling between Nathan and the girl gets louder and Max notices the fear in her voice. She’s shouting for Nathan to get something away from her. Nathan has pulled his gun out. Through a tremendous force, Max makes her body work again and she takes a gasping breath as her lungs regain usage. She steps out from the stall and runs towards Nathan.

The girl is the first to see her, though the sound of her running also alerts Nathan who turns around. Before he could grasp what he was seeing, though, Max makes a wild swing with the hammer.

The splash of blood on her face and Nathan’s agonized scream stops Max completely. Her heart thunders in her chest blocking out all other sounds. She stares wide eyed at the punk girl who stares back frozen in terror and shock too. Swallowing, Max notes the metallic, tangy taste of blood in her mouth and a feeling of light-headedness overcome her.

Her eyes floats down lethargically as she notes that Nathan is now glaring at her with eyes in-between intense pain, fear, and anger. His left eye socket is bleeding profusely from where Max had hit him. He grips his handgun and lifts it to aim at her. Max knows she should dodge or possibly swing the hammer again, but she finds herself paralyzed once more and the hammer even falls out of her hands. She stares at the barrel of Nathan’s handgun helplessly. He fires and a burst of light fills her vision.

And that’s when she wakes up.

This time lacks the disorientation of the prior two times Max had woken up, though a sense of queasiness and nausea remains. When she opens her eyes, she lifts her head to face Mr. Jefferson. She couldn’t find it in herself to think or do much of anything. She merely stares blankly ahead without registering what her eyes see.

Mr. Jefferson continues his speech about the importance of contrast, its origins, and its modern applications unabated until the school bell rings. He gives another reminder on the ‘Everyday Heroes’ contest making a point of calling out her, Alyssa, Taylor, and Stella.

Max ignored him and everybody else. She mechanically packs her bag hardly even caring when she shoves her precious camera into her bag. Her body moves in a sort of slow motion wherein she sees everything with an extra clarity. Once finished, she examines the room around her and her eyes land once more on Victoria.

She makes note of the electronics she covets so much and the fashionable, expensive clothing without caring for them so much this time. Max’s eyes pauses on the pearl necklace Victoria wears and she mentally notes that she must look stupid just staring at it blankly with no reaction. Vaguely, she became aware that Victoria is looking at her.

Looking up, Max’s eyes meet the cold ones of Victoria’s. The blonde glares at her a moment longer before she finishes packing and leaves. Max, feeling emotionally shot, immediately leaves the classroom ignoring Mr. Jefferson’s calling for her.

In the hallway, as if being controlled by some external force, she makes her way towards the bathroom passing several people, including Victoria at her locker, on the way. As soon as she steps inside the bathroom, she heads for her hiding place in the back. There, she falls to the floor, grips the yellow caution sign, and crouches against the wall feeling a sort of helpless fear overtake her.

Why did she come back here? Why doesn’t she just go to her dorms instead of facing this nightmare again?

When she hears the door opens and Nathan’s voice again, Max briefly wonders if she is in some sort of purgatory hell wherein her fate is to be shot by Nathan over and over again.

That punk girl enters again and the same argument starts up. Max shuts her eyes fighting back tears of helplessness. She doesn’t want to die anymore. _She doesn’t want to die anymore_.

“-I know you’ve been pumpin’ drugs and shit to little kids around here. I bet your respectable family would help me out if I went to them. Man, I can see the headlines now.”

“Leave them out of this, bitch!”

“I can tell everybody Nathan Prescott is a punk ass who begs like a little girl and talks to himself!“

“You don’t know who the fuck I am or who you’re messing around with!”

“Where’d you get that? What are you-“

A door opens and there is silence. “What the _fuck_ is going on here?”

Max’s eyes shoots open. She slowly gets up still grasping onto the caution sign.

“Victoria!” Nathan shouts in surprise. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“I was going to use the bathroom to refresh. That’s not important. Nate, what the hell are you doing? Why do you have a gun? And aiming it at her?”

Peeking around the stall, Max sees both Nathan and the punk girl with their backs to her facing an apprehensive Victoria. All three were focused on each other and haven’t noticed Max.

The blue hair girl raises her hands to calm Victoria. “Nothing. We weren’t doing nothing. I was just going to leave.”

“You’re not going anywhere!” Nathan shouts grabbing onto her jacket. He then turns to Victoria. “Victoria, get out of here! Pretend you saw nothing!”

Nathan is waving the gun wildly at Victoria who backs away fearfully but she refuses to leave. “Nate, put that gun down. Lets talk about this. Please.”

Nathan seems to lose his cool more and more. “Shut up! Just get out of here! I can handle this, Victoria, but you’re going to ruin everything. Just leave! Leave!”

“ _Nathan Prescott!_ ” Victoria shouts.

Nathan’s erratic behavior is getting out of hand. He is slamming the punk girl against the stall with each shout as she tries to fight back. Furthermore, he is now aiming the gun at Victoria who is afraid of what he is going to do. The sound of running footsteps stops them all.

A painful slam against the back of his neck is the last thing Nathan feels before he becomes unconscious. His gun slides away from him as he crashes to the floor in-between the two girls he had been threatening.

There is a moment of shock before Victoria’s thoughts clear and her eyes takes in the figure of Max holding a caution sign. The annoying hipster from her class had just knocked out Nathan with a caution sign. The blue hair girl who Nathan had been clutching stares at Max, her eyes widen slightly, and then she rushes past Victoria to make her escape.

Victoria glances at Nathan again, then hastily picks up his gun to shove into her purse. No need to let him have that again. Then she walks up to Max and grabs her hand. She had been frozen still since she knocked out Nathan.

“We’re going, Max. Come on.”

She allows Victoria to drag her along. The two of them leaves the bathroom and then out of the academy. Through the thick haze that has overtaken her mind, snippets of their surroundings makes its way into Max’s mind and she is somewhat aware that they’re heading down a familiar path, though it isn’t until they were already in a very familiar hallway that Max realized they were in the girls’ dormitories.

Of course, she had assumed Victoria was leading Max to her own room but after they went through a door, she looks up in surprise to see an unfamiliar room.

“Where…is this?”

Victoria rolls her eyes. “My room. Duh.”

She had said that as if it should be obvious, but it wasn’t. Not to Max. The only kind of relationship that could be described between Victoria and Max is a bully and her victim. Possibly rivals if one think in the most generous of terms. So why did Victoria bring her back to her room?

Victoria unbuttons and shrugs off her sweater to reveal a champagne color, expensive Givenchy button up shirt. Not for the first time, Victoria makes Max self conscious about her own appearance, but the former takes no notice of that. She hangs her sweater up and falls tiredly onto her mini couch.

Max looks around again growing more impressed. Victoria’s room is full of the expected products of obscene wealth, but it is also filled with items that could have easily belonged to her. It seems having money doesn’t make one immune to the cheap and tacky as the room also has the kind of knick knacks one might buy with unthinking impulse.

A tickling sense inside of her makes Max takes out her camera. She looks through the viewfinder to ensure the frame catches all three aesthetic, then she takes a shot. As with all photos, she places the one she took of Victoria’s room inside her bag with care. After all, this room will now be a part of her memory and precious to her.

The flash of the camera gets Victoria’s attention and she looks up at Max as if noticing her for the first time. She rolls her eyes at the typical display of random photography. “Are you going to keep standing? Sit.”

Victoria pats the spot beside her. Max hesitates, then puts her camera away and goes to sit beside the girl who had – just that morning – glared at her with a look of disdain. For that reason, Max sits on the same couch, but makes sure to keep her distance.

“I can’t believe what just happened.” Victoria sighs. “But I guess I owe you, Max.”

The brunette looks up. “Huh?”

“With Nathan, of course. I had just wanted to go into the bathroom to touch my make-up a bit and what do I find? Nathan looking like he was about to gun down that bitch Price. Then he starts waving a gun around in my direction.”

“If…” Victoria continues, but more quiet. “If you hadn’t knocked him out, I’m not sure I would have made it out alive.”

Made it…made it out alive. A shock goes through Max. She actually made it out alive. She passed the place where she had died over and over again. She didn’t wake up again in Mr. Jefferson’s class.

She doesn’t know if this means she’s no longer stuck in some sort of endless hell, but she doesn’t care. Feeling wetness on her face, she lifts a hand to wipe it away realizing she is crying. She no longer has to go through getting shot over and over again

Victoria notices this but mistakes it thinking Max is crying from fear. “Jesus, don’t cry, it’s pathetic. I know it was scary. I…was a little scared too.” She said that last part quieter than the rest. “But it’s over now. Besides, I took Nate’s gun.”

Max nods. “That’s good.” She wipes at her face once more. “But it’s not really over, though. Nathan is still around.”

Sitting back huffing a breath of frustration, Victoria nods, “Yeah, I…I’ll have to talk to him. I don’t know what the fuck is going on, but there has to be a reason. He wouldn’t do this otherwise. Listen, Max, stay quiet about this, alright? It’ll be safer for you anyway.”

“But shouldn’t we report this?”

“Who would believe you? I’m his friend and I didn’t even know he owned a gun. The idea of him pulling one on people in the women’s bathroom would have been unbelievable to me if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes. No one else will believe you.” Victoria sighs again. “Just let me talk to him, okay? I’ll work it out.”

The blonde runs a hand through her hair looking exhausted. “It was really just pure luck things happened as it did. Everything could have gone so wrong.”

Max didn’t say anything knowing personally it was far more than just luck. After all, she died twice before finally taking down Nathan. If her dreams hadn’t given her a head’s up…can they be called dreams anymore? What are they? Premonitions? Or does she have some kind of future telling ability? Regardless, why did it suddenly come to her?

And why did things keep changing each time? Why did only Victoria show up the first time, only the punk girl the second time, and both of them the third time? Max is tempted to call it merely timing, but that doesn’t seem right.

In the first one, Victoria and Nathan argued longer than it took for the punk girl to show up in the other dreams…premonitions…futures or whatever they are. She should have shown up as they were fighting or whatever, but she didn’t at all. In the other…’visions’, the girl shows up as normal.

Max recalls, though, that in each of the ones she shows up, she immediately searches the stalls for other people as she wanted to keep the blackmail silent. Is it possible she heard Victoria and Nathan arguing and decided to leave? Or maybe she had been waiting outside the bathroom. She only shows up normally when Victoria doesn’t appear first.

But then why did Victoria not appear during the second vision? In the first, she was the first to appear, but, in the third, she was the last. Why?

Racking her memories, the only real difference Max can recall is that in the two visions where Victoria appears, Max had been staring at her and had been caught doing so. As she notes that, more realizations come to her. In the second vision, Max did not stare at Victoria and she also ends up getting pulled back by Mr. Jefferson as she tried to leave. Upon leaving, she meets Victoria herself who then gets into a conversation with their teacher.

Is that really the whole reason? Not staring at Victoria and getting lectured by Mr. Jefferson? Or maybe just one of them was enough to do it? But then why did it take Victoria so long to get to the bathroom in the third vision?

She feels her head spinning with all the questions which she can only guess the answer to. At the same time, though, a relief comes to her that it no longer matters. She doesn’t have to do it anymore, so she doesn’t have to wonder anymore.

The vibration of Max’s cell phone breaks the silence that has taken the room as Max and Victoria both contemplate the various issues on their mind. Max takes out her device and reads the text. It is a message from Warren asking for his flash drive back.

She sighs not really wanting to see anyone today, but is also simultaneously happy she can leave Victoria’s room. Perhaps things can go back to something resembling normal.

“Uh, hey, Victoria. I just got a message from Warren. I have to go now, alright?” Max gets up from the couch and Victoria follows suit. “Thanks for letting me in your room.”

“Let me walk you out the dorms.” Surprise must have been on Max’s face because Victoria suddenly adds in irritation. “It’s just a bit of assurance for me. I want to be sure things are good right now, so I can rest easy.”

That only increases the surprise. Victoria is worried about her? The girl that has been bullying her almost non-stop since her arrival at Blackwell? This feels more like an actual dream than the visions Max went through.

For the sake of expediency, Max nods in assent. Victoria puts her sweater back on and the two walks out of her room and across to that of Max’s. Inside, the feeling of self-consciousness that is always present whenever Victoria is around increases as this is the first time Max had the blonde in her room. It never even occurred to her that Victoria going into her room would be a possibility.

Inside, Max goes to her drawers and desk looking for the flash drive while Victoria stares around. The blonde picks up Max’s teddy bear and stares at it while Max rummages around. It is only when Max looks near her laptop, which she now wonders why she didn’t do so to begin with, that she notices a note from her friend, Dana, saying she has her flash drive.

“Damn.” Max mutters getting Victoria’s attention. “Dana has the drive. We’ll have to go get it from her.”

Victoria nods and the two leaves the room. Before they even reach Dana’s room, though, the sounds of an argument reaches them and they see Juliet standing against the door. Dana is pounding against the door demanding to be let out.

Juliet looks over at them and her eyes seem to linger on Victoria. Max purses her lips not really wanting to do this, but knows she needs the flash drive.

“Hey Juliet, is everything cool?”

She looks at Max in irritation. “No, Max. Everything is not cool. That is why I locked Dana in her room. Because they aren’t cool.”

The sarcasm makes Max flinches. “What did she do to you?”

“She’s been sexting my boyfriend.” Here, Juliet glances at Victoria before turning her attention back to Max. “I know this for a fact.”

She was about to ask Juliet how she knows it ‘for a fact’ when Victoria lets out a disgusted sigh and steps forward.

“I was lying, you idiot. Now let us into the room, so we can get Max’s stuff.”

It took a few minutes for Max to process what she just heard and organize the information in her head to form the story of how they got to this point. Juliet, meanwhile, goes through a variety of emotions.

The first, obviously, being surprise at the revelation. The second being self-loathing possibly for her rash action of locking in her friend or for being deceived so easily. The third is hate directed at Victoria.

“Why did you do it?” Juliet asks.

Victoria ‘tsk’ and looks away. “That article you wrote for the stupid school paper pissed me off. You called the Vortex Club a cult and you even put in about how I tried to stop you. I made up that story in order to get back at you.”

Juliet digests this information, then silently turns to open the door. She looks apologetically at Dana who stares back in expectation. The two girls quietly trade words and it ends when Juliet walks away heading into her room across from that of Dana’s. She does not leave without throwing Victoria a vicious glare, however, and she throws Max a look too, though Max is unable to decipher its meaning.

They walk into the room and Dana stands to the side looking at the two of them. She had listened in on the conversation just outside her door and knows what happened. She glares at Victoria and looks confusedly at Max.

“Uh, hey, Dana.” Max greets. “I found your note saying you have the flash drive I need to give back to Warren?”

She nods and walks to her desk to pick up the flash drive. She hands it to Max and stands back again without saying anything. Max gets the sense that Dana wanted to say something but either didn’t know what or didn’t want to say it in front of Victoria.

Max mutters a ‘thank you’ and they leave. After a moment of walking, she stops and turns to look at Victoria.

“Why did you do that?”

Victoria raises an eyebrow. “You mean lie to Juliet? I said so. She wrote an article I didn’t like.”

“And for that, you nearly broke up two best friends?”

“Why am I to blame for that? She shouldn’t have been so gullible. Or better, perhaps she shouldn’t write bullshit articles about things she knows nothing about.”

Letting out a sigh of frustration, Max turns and continues walking. When they get to the end of the hallway, she turns to Victoria again intending to say farewell. The blonde looks at the door then back to Max.

“Do you have my number?”

She startles. “Uh, no.”

Victoria takes out her phone and sends a text. A moment later, Max’s phone vibrates making her jump a bit. Did Victoria just send her a text to give her number? But how does she know Max’s number?

“That’s mine. We’re splitting here, but…but if you should need help or just want to talk or whatever, call me. I’m always available.” Here, Victoria pauses. “Or…maybe you want me to walk you all the way? If you’re not taking too long, I guess I have some time.”

Once again, Max feels surprise at Victoria’s atypical kindness, especially in light of what she just saw with Juliet. For a moment, she thought of accepting because she genuinely is frightened of encountering Nathan again, but realizes that she can’t depend on having an escort to walk her everywhere.

Besides, having Victoria walk her wouldn’t really help anyway. The blonde is tough, but Nathan is just completely off his rocker. If he does appear, it’ll just endanger them both.

All the same, for that moment, Max feels a sense of happiness and warmth spread through her for the offer.

“Victoria, you’re…you’re really nice today.” The blonde merely raises an eyebrow at Max’s words. “Well, maybe not to everyone, but at least to me. I appreciate it, but I’ll be fine on my own. Maybe…maybe we can get together sometime later and have tea, though?”

Max’s question is met with a pause. “I’ll think about it.”

Then Victoria turns and leaves. When she disappears into her room, Max makes her way out. Outside, she stares at the students playing but doesn’t really register them. She’ll be meeting Warren soon, but for the moment, all she could think of is Victoria.

It’s hard for her to put it into words, but at that moment, it seems the world changed a little.


	2. Chapter 02

**Chapter 02**

When Max arrives at the parking lot where Warren is waiting, a few things caught her eyes before she even sets foot onto the lot.

The first is the sheer number of those 'Rachel Amber' missing posters. They really are everywhere, but here, they take on a new expression of desperation. The parking lot is small and whoever is putting these up could have easily gotten anyone's and everyone's attention by only putting up maybe four or five of them in every corner.

Instead, they put up a poster in every corner, on every windshield, and there must have been a time when the posters were up on even more places because the pavement is now littered with even more copies. It's as if whoever is putting these up had really given up hope and is simply spreading as many out as possible because it's all they know to do.

The badly rusted truck blocking two handicapped parking spaces is the next thing to grab her attention.

Aside from the sheer obnoxiousness of someone taking up two spaces and two handicapped ones at that, there is just something made extra worse by the fact that the truck looks so horrid in a parking lot full of clean cars. Max notices someone's head lying against the wheel, but the person's appearance isn't easily gleaned from where she is. She shudders wondering what kind of redneck invaded her school.

Walking towards Warren, the last thing she takes note of is the large camper parked just ahead of the rusted truck. It also takes two spaces, but is huddled towards a corner to keep out of the way. If anything, whoever owns that seems more polite than the owner of the truck.

But it got Max's notice because the windows were papered with cardboard which gives off a foreboding vibe. Perhaps unintentional, but there all the same.

"Hey Max, how are you?" Warren's arms twitches as if he intended to hug her but thought better of it at the last moment. "What do you think of my new car?"

Max looks it over as she hands Warren his flash drive. "It's cool. Old school style."

"That's why I got it. Now that I have my own car, we can go see some movies at the drive-in. There's some nice features playing that you might be interested in."

She listens but doesn't respond. Warren is obviously interested in her as more than a friend. Max likes him…but she just never liked him in _that way_. She has tried to never respond positively to his overt suggestions, but her friend is nothing if not persistent.

"You are a real nerd, Warren."

"That's why you love me!" He looks as if to say something else, but stops. "Hey, are you alright? You're looking a little off-beat. I can't describe it exactly but there's something about your face."

She giggles. "Thanks. It's nothing. Well, it's not 'nothing' but…it's just been a really fucked up day. I swear I'm going crazy."

"I can believe it." He nods knowingly, then hesitates a little. "Earlier, some of my friends told me they saw you walking with _the_ Victoria Chase. I wouldn't have believed it if there was only one of them saying so, but three – count them, three – of my friends says they saw it. Is it real?"

"It's real." She nods. "Victoria can be surprisingly nice. We actually hung out in her room today."

He looks blown away. "Oh my God. Wait, is that the 'fucked up' part you're talking about?"

"Nah. Well, it's related."

She hesitates to tell him about what happened. Max feels that she can confide in Warren and he'll be discrete about it, but at the same time, it doesn't feel like the kind of thing she could talk about. That's just the Nathan with a gun part too. The part about visions is just so much worse. Furthermore, Victoria did ask her to be quiet about this even if Max thinks that is a bad idea.

As she thinks of how to respond, though, she notices Warren's eyes are focused on something behind her. Turning around, Max does a doubletake to see the blue hair girl behind her. The one from the bathroom.

Now without the paralyzing fear and the distraction of possibly getting shot, Max is able to look at her more closely. She has a blue beanie hat covering her dyed hair, a raggy brown jacket over equally raggy white t-shirt, and a basic pair of jeans. Her jacket is rolled up allowing the tattoos on her arm to peek out. Her attire includes a number of eye-catching accessories such as a spike bracelet.

From top to bottom, this girl just screams 'punk' and she fits the stereotype perfectly. Max feels her breath being taken away at the sight of her…but it was not due to the clothing. No, it's because she looked into the girl's face and recognition is slowly coming to her.

"Chloe?" Max whispers hesitantly.

'Chloe' opens her mouth and closes it again. Then she grins. "Right-o. I know who you are too…Max. My friend. Well, when you're not off somewhere for five years or so."

It is well deserved and even expected, but she nonetheless couldn't help flinching at Chloe's immediate aim for her jugular. She looks away and doesn't respond. It isn't until she hears a sigh that she looks up again to see her looking off in the horizon as if contemplating something.

Warren, meanwhile, had remained silent not sure how to respond to all of this. He is staring blankly at Chloe not sure how to take in this person. She looks back at him unimpressed.

"Look, can we…have a chat? Just you and me." Chloe says that pointedly at Warren. "It's been a long time since we've talked, so I think we should catch up. Come on, I'll drive us somewhere to eat."

Hesitating, Max glances at Warren as if hoping he can give her an answer but he's confused himself and doesn't even take note of her glances. Chloe becomes more insistent by grabbing Max's hand and tugging gently. It does the trick, however, and she slowly follows her.

"A-alright, I'll come." Max consents. "We'll talk later, alright, Warren?"

He nods at her, though it's hard to say if he really understood. Regardless, she leaves him to his self as Chloe now leads her along. To Max's great surprise, she is led to the rusted truck.

"Go on in. It's unlocked."

She does as told and sits patiently looking over the various oddities within the truck. Chloe gets in the driver seat and starts the car up. By this point, it is clear that Chloe is none other than 'the redneck that has invaded her school' and Max now feels guilty for thinking it. Obviously, this truck is probably all her friend could afford.

Even then, though, being poor doesn't mean you have to take up two handicap spaces when parking, does it?

They drive off in silence. Max finds herself unable to resist a glance at her now and then, but each glance leaves her feeling more unsure and, somehow, more guilty. As if the current Chloe is her fault.

Not that she looks _that_ awful, but her face is gaunt and her eyes displays exhaustion marks. Her wrists are skeletal and she moves with an over-exaggerated sort of twitchiness. It's like looking at a drug addict. If the smell coming off her is right too, then drugs are definitely a part of the equation.

The silence between them became a sort of burden for Max and she wanted Chloe to break it. To just talk to her and indulge the both of them in the sort of happiness that only nostalgia – happy childhood nostalgia – can provide. She doesn't say a word or even looks at her, though, and Max knows that any 'catching up' between them will always be colored by the fact that she left for Seattle and never spoke to her again.

Her own reminder of that makes the silence that much more burdensome. Seeing that Chloe isn't going to say anything, Max takes the initiative to start the conversation.

"So, hey, how have things been?"

For the first time since they've been in the truck, Chloe looks at her. Max looks back into those indecipherable blue eyes of her friend hoping to see something other than blankness. Chloe turns back to the road.

"They've been alright. I'm still poor as shit and half this town wants a piece of me, but I live to see another day." Chloe chuckles. "But you know all of that already."

She didn't understand what Chloe meant at first, but realizes that she must mean the bathroom incident. Yes, trying to blackmail Nathan Prescott only to almost get shot for it. Chloe is, no doubt, in dire straits.

"What the hell were you doing in there anyway, Max? Hiding in the back of the girls' bathroom is a pastime of yours?"

There is a pause. "It's…complicated."

"Try me."

Chloe is insistent, but Max isn't sure how she can even explain it. If it weren't for those damn visions, Max would have been standing at the sink when Nathan or maybe Victoria pops in and she would have been caught right in the drama that envelops them all. So she settles for the most believable thing she could think of, which is basically a mess of details.

"I heard Nathan."

"Go on." Chloe prods.

"I heard Nathan. He had opened the door and was muttering to himself. I ran to hide thinking he was crazy. That's when everything happened."

"He was so out of it that he didn't even see you or see you running when he came in?" Chloe asks doubtfully.

"He didn't open the door the whole way." Max amends. "He only half opened it and I heard his muttering before I saw him."

A moment of silence passes. "Why didn't you just tell him to get out?"

"He was a boy and he was muttering to himself, Chloe. I didn't want to risk facing whoever it was."

"I see." Chloe scowls. "I guess I got lucky then. If he wasn't such an idiot, you wouldn't have been hidden and come out to save my dumb ass."

Max didn't respond to that. She wasn't sure how to respond to saving her friend from blackmail gone wrong. Thankfully, she didn't have to. Chloe continues talking.

"After I made a break for it, I sat stewing in my truck trying to figure out what happened. How the hell it came to me being held up, that preppy bitch Victoria getting caught in this, and then you coming out of nowhere to save my ass."

Max momentarily pauses noticing the familiar reference to Victoria. She also recalled the blonde talking about Chloe in a similar way. How do they know each other? Knowing Victoria as she does, she probably bullied Chloe. On the other hand, knowing Chloe as she does – did – there's no way Chloe would have let her.

Chloe continues, "I thought I would have to just figure it all out myself later, but I knew I saw you…and I wanted to talk to you. I didn't know where you were or how to get to you, though. I was planning on coming back to Blackwell later, but when I looked up, who should I see but the person I wanted to talk to? So here we are."

There is a pause. "Chloe, why were you and Nathan…?"

She didn't finish it, but she knows Chloe got the idea of what she's asking. A sigh comes from her friend as she continues looking ahead.

"I needed the money, okay? I wasn't kidding when I said I'm poor as shit. That fucking a-hole Nathan tried to drug and rape me, but I woke up halfway through. I could have reported him, but I thought I could get him to pay me to be quiet instead."

Chloe had said that so casually, though the story left Max shaken and breathless. Has life become so bad that she could describe a drugging and attempted rape as if it wasn't anything special? Is life such that she could decide to turn a failed rape into blackmail material that easily?

An intense sense of sadness overcame her. She wanted to lean over and hug Chloe, though she doesn't dare do it. A fear of not knowing how the other girl would react is part of the reason she didn't, but it is also a deep guilt that makes her believe comfort from _her_ of all people is meaningless.

A passing tree suddenly makes her pay more attention to her surroundings. Her head shoots up and she examines the road to realize they're on a deserted road with no house in sight.

"Chloe, where are we? I thought you said we were going to get something to eat."

"Chill, Max. I just wanted to show you something first."

"What? Where is it?"

"I'll show you." Chloe dodges the question. "Don't worry. You'll like it. Trust me."

She wasn't assured by Chloe's words, but finds she didn't really need to be. Despite the loss in time between the two them, she still trusted the other girl enough to not need to worry.

Eventually, they reach a junkyard and Chloe pulls in parking the truck.

When the ignition is turned off, Max whispers in surprise, "You wanted to show me a landfill?"

"It's _not_ a landfill. It's a junkyard! I call it 'American Rust' and it's my home."

"Your _home_? Uh, what…about…?"

Rolling her eyes, she clunks lightly on Max's head. "I don't mean for real, Max. I still live with my mom and her punk ass boyfriend. Here, though…here is where I have real freedom and where I spent some of the happiest times of my life. Better yet, it's mine. No one else wants it except me." She unbuckles. "Now come on, let me show you around."

Chloe protests it, but 'American Rust' really does seem like a landfill, though the word 'junkyard' would fit equally well. Rusted, dumped vehicles fill most of the lot while the rest contain thrown out machinery, garbage bags, used hypodermic needles, and various other trash most people would not want.

At the back end of this disgusting lot lie a small building with graffiti on it and Chloe leads Max through the open doorway. Inside, the first thing Max notice is that it looks more 'homey' than she would have imagined. There is a small desk, a single chair, a mini sofa with a table in front, and the place is decorated by various posters, bits of make-up, and various other signs of life.

It is not entirely innocent, though. Littered throughout the little home are empty bottles of beer, _broken_ bottles of beer with the glass still lying there, pizza boxes, ashtrays with half smoked cigarettes in there, bits of graffiti, and a general atmosphere of apathy.

The building, lair, home or whatever else Chloe wishes to call it is rife with the dank smell of weed and there are bottles of prescription pills in various spots though Max has doubts whether they actually belong to her friend or not.

Max stands before this display of sheer teenage disaffection and cringes. She is more and more assured that the person she now refers to as Chloe is not actually the Chloe of her childhood but an entirely different person. She realizes that 'catching up' is perhaps not what she has to do at all but 'learning about' as she is positive she knows nothing about this person she has been calling friend.

Nearly on auto, Max takes out her camera and snaps a shot without even bothering to frame it.

Chloe blinks and glances at the room as if in wonder at what there is that's worth photographing. Truth is that Max couldn't tell her. She doesn't know why she photograph half the things she does.

Falling onto the mini sofa, Chloe pats the spot beside her while looking at Max. Hesitantly, she walks over and sits gently beside her.

"So Max, what have you been up to? How come you haven't gotten in touch with your old friend since coming to Blackwell?"

"Not much, really." Max starts with the easier question. "I've been trying to get better at photography and I'm studying under a famous photographer named Mark Jefferson now. I'm not really sure if I'm getting any better, though."

"And as for why you haven't spoke to me?" Chloe asks again giving Max an unblinking stare.

"I'm sorry." She averts her eyes. "I wanted to get settled in first. I was already so unsure about classes, how I might fit in, and a lot more. I didn't know if I could handle any more stress."

"Yeah, right. You wanted to get settled in first." Chloe snorts turning away. "I'm sure it takes a month to settle in and you were definitely going to pay a visit afterwards."

Max flinches from the sarcasm and doesn't respond. Chloe pulls a pack of cigarettes and lights one smoothly. She blows out smoke into the air and stares at the ceiling not saying anything. Max wanted to speak but didn't really know what to say.

Chloe is right and wrong. Max actually thought a lot about her when since discovering she had been accepted to Blackwell and, during the initial arrival, her thoughts only increased. She really did thought often about and wanted to visit her childhood friend.

However, after a week and she got accustomed, the thoughts slowly faded. Part of it was fear, but perhaps another part was sheer inertia. She made plenty of nice sounding excuses to herself, but it basically boiled down to her not willing to take the risk and spend the effort.

The result is now what happened. A forced reunion by sheer chance that is ruined because of awkwardness and accusations.

A sigh grabs her attention. "I'm…sorry. I didn't mean to say that." Chloe looks at her apologetically. "I thought about you a lot while you were gone, you know. Sometimes, I'd imagine you'd just show up out of the blue one day and then things would go back to the way they used to be before…well, you know."

An obvious reference to the death of her father, William. An event that drastically changed everything for her, though Max likely doesn't even know the true extent of it seeing as she moved just shortly afterwards. It is only now that she's beginning to catch a glimpse of just how great that change is.

"Then one day…" Chloe continues. "you actually do show up out of the blue. Like some superhero or something, you even save my life in the process, and what do I do? I act like a bitch." She runs a hand through her hair. "I'm sorry again, alright? It's just…it's just that it's hard for me. Things are happening a bit too quick."

Max swallows. "I know, Chloe. I'm sorry too…for everything."

On an impulse, she leans in and wraps her arms around her. Chloe stiffen in surprise, but slowly loosens up and returns the hug even firmer than Max did. Chloe's face nestles into the crook of Max's neck and she inhales making the latter giggle at the feeling. Hearing the giggle, Chloe smiles and tightens the hug.

After what feels like a long while, they let go. Chloe leans back taking her cigarette back up. "Welcome home, Max. I'm glad you're here with me."

"I'm happy to be here, Chloe." Max smiles tentatively and takes another gander around the space. Her eyes land on a box of posters. "Hey, those…are the Rachel Amber posters that are everywhere. You have a whole box full. Were you the one putting them up?"

Chloe nods. "Mm-hmm. Rachel is…a friend of mine. After you left, I hooked up with her and we became good friends. She taught me a lot of things, you know. More importantly, she was _there_ when no one else was. She is smart. Real fucking smart. She has big plans too. Plans I'm going to be a part of."

"But…" The young woman sighs. "A few months ago, though, she suddenly up and disappears without a word or a phone call. Her school don't know where she is. Her parents don't know where she is. I've been putting up these posters to try to get information on her whereabouts, but I'll be damned if even a single clue comes up."

The anger and disappointment is obvious in Chloe's voice. Max bites her bottom lip in thought. Whoever this Rachel Amber was, she certainly is important to Chloe.

"What was she like?"

Chloe's cigarette hangs a bit lower. "She's a blonde. Pretty hazel eyes. She's about your height, but more filled out. Like I said, she's also real smart. She has like a perfect 4.0 GPA and involved in every fucking thing in that school, including the damn Vortex Club. She has a mile long line of friends and everyone else who isn't friends with her knows who she is."

"She sometimes come off as distant and not caring, but…" Here, a small smile comes onto Chloe's face and she flicks away her cigarette not caring where it lands." When you're down- like, _really_ down, she'll notice and she'll perk you up without you even realizing what she's trying to do. She's damn good at it too. She can read people like a book and know exactly how to talk to them. She can get anyone to believe she's the best thing ever. To the tightasses at Blackwell, she is the hard studying, ambitious golden student. To me and her friends, though, she is the hard partying, most loving girl you can know."

"She is just…hella incredible."

It was a very heartfelt description. Chloe's words were infused with a sort of melancholy that couldn't have come simply from losing a friend, but perhaps something more. She innately feels the connection Chloe had with this girl without needing to ask anymore and, in a way, she feels some of the ache her friend must feel with the girl's loss.

"I want to find her, Max. I just want to see her again. I don't want to lose her like I've lost everyone else. You, my dad. I can't lose her too."

There is an intense sadness radiating from Chloe's eyes. She wanted to somehow take that away, so she reached out and took a hold of Chloe's hand. Chloe did not stiffen this time but immediately returns the gesture. Her fingers maneuvers lightly within Max's grasp as if she is trying to learn the contours of her hand.

The two then falls into a trance-like silence where they only comfort each other with their own presence.

It isn't until Max looks out the window some time later that she notices the sun setting. Had they simply been in there that long or had it been late to begin with? She is unable to recall which.

"Chloe, it's getting a bit late. Do you mind taking me back to Blackwell?" Max asks getting up and dusting herself.

"Blackwell?" Chloe says the word disdainfully. She stretches her lanky body. "Don't be silly – I still haven't gotten you the food I promised. Come to my house and have dinner."

"I don't think I can, Chloe. Blackwell enforces a curfew and I'll get in trouble if I'm late."

"Stay at my place. It'll be just like old times." Chloe exclaims grabbing ahold of Max's hands. "You and me! Pirates together again! C'mon, it'll be fun."

"I don't know." Max says averting her eyes not really comfortable with the idea of getting into trouble at Blackwell. Her grades weren't good as it is and being a troublemaker could make her lose her scholarship.

"…please?"

That word makes Max looks up and Chloe's eyes are pleading with her. Hypnotized by the color of Chloe's eyes, Max could only nod unconsciously. Chloe responds by letting out a joyful whoop and runs out of the building towards her truck. She calls for Max to follow along.

Max gets in the car and hardly a second after she closes the door, Chloe takes off almost hitting an empty barrel in the process. Max clutches onto her seat hoping Chloe is better at driving than she is at parking.

Soon, they are passing houses and other cars. Max begins to recognize familiar areas and know they're close to reaching the Price household. Her thoughts flit to that of Joyce and wonders how Chloe's poor mother is doing. She had been like another mother to Max as a child and she longs to meet the woman again and eat her waffles.

Her phone vibrating snaps her out of her thoughts. She takes out her phone to see a text message from Victoria.

_Victoria: Hey Max, u there? You're not back in your room so I wanted to check to see if you're alright_

Max is surprised by Victoria's concern again. Just yesterday…no, not even yesterday. Just this afternoon, their entire relationship could be summarized by glares and avoidance. Then an insane bathroom incident happens and, as if with a click of a button, they're sitting beside each other in their rooms, walking together, and, now, texting each other out of concern.

A smile forms on Max's face.

_Max: Srry, I'm with Chloe now. I might not be back until tomorrow._

_Victoria: Chloe Price? The blue haired girl in the bathroom with us, rite?_

_Max: Yeah._

_Victoria: Huh, I didn't expect u to have friends like that, Maxine. Alright, have fun, I guess. We definitely need to talk more tomorrow, tho._

_Max: Gotcha. I'll see you tomorrow._

She lowers the phone and glances at Chloe out of the side of her eye. The other is looking straight ahead. There's that sense again – the sense that Victoria and Chloe are much more familiar than she would have thought. If her impression is right, then it's the bad kind of familiar.

As she moves to put the phone back into her bag, it vibrates again. Max looks at the new pop up to see a text message from Kate this time.

_Kate: Hey Max are you okay?_

She frowns at the question. She could very much ask the same of the other girl.

Kate had, as of late, been acting very depressed and introverted. Not that the young, pretty girl had ever really been outgoing, but optimism had been a noticeable part of her personality. Much like Max too, she had been a victim of bullying, though to greater extent.

Lately, however, some just feels off.

_Max: I'm good. Why?_

_Kate: You left in a hurry today ignoring even Mr Jefferson calling for you. Then I havent seen you all day and now youre still not here after curfew. Whats wrong?_

Max's eyes widen and a flood of memories come to her making her stomach tighten. She had left like that expecting to get shot and wake up in class again only to finally stop that horrible cycle. She hadn't expected to, though, so when she left, she was more of a zombie than a human.

Afterwards, she spent much of the day hiding out in Victoria's room then with Chloe. She must have been in a bad way if even Kate, dealing with her own issues, noticed and is concerned enough to ask.

_Max: Nothing really, Kate. It's just been an insane day._

_Kate: Want to talk about it? Tea with me tomorrow? I was hoping to talk to you too. Ive been really bothered lately._

_Max: I know. Yeah, lets have tea tomorrow._

_Kate: Alright. Ill talk to you then. xoxo_

Max smiles softly at the last text. It was typical Kate and it makes her heart warm. Kate always seems so much happier in text. Perhaps because Max can't look into her eyes and know that not everything is alright.

Fighting off bullies is something Max can't even do for herself, so she feels inadequately equipped to give Kate the help she really needs. However, if nothing else, she can be a friend to her and, as always, Max will be happy to visit her for tea tomorrow. She hopes Kate still has some of those wonderful lemon zest tea.

"Hey, Mad Max, we're here."

She looks up and sees that they're approaching the Price household. It is a little dark and the lights are out in some of the houses along the road. At Chloe's house, there's an SUV already there.

Chloe pulls in parking at an awkward angle before turning off the ignition and leaning back sighing. She glares hatefully at the SUV.

"Looks like my step-douche is home." She takes out her phone and looks at it. "My mom is probably there too. Alright, lets get in, Max. I don't know about the asshole, but my mom would probably love to see you."

The two of them gets out of the car and Chloe leads the way to the house. Max wonders nervously who Chloe's stepfather is and why would she be unsure about whether he'll like her. What possible reason could he have for disliking her?

Chloe kicks the door open slamming it against the wall making Max flinch.

"Honey, I'm home!" She sings with a tinge of sarcasm. "What's for dinner?"

"Chloe, please don't slam the door!"

"I told you about doing that shit!"

The first voice Max recognizes as Joyce. The second voice is masculine and much louder making her stop in fright. It is a rough voice – the kind that believes it could assert its authority through sheer volume and force. However, there is also something very familiar about it that Max couldn't help but notice.

A man walks from out the corner of the living room wearing a plaid shirt stained with oil, dirt, dust, and various other materials. Max's eyes widen a bit recognizing him as Blackwell's head security guard: David Madsen. Her mind rattles realizing this is the man that Chloe is referring to.

He's also known to be a _very_ dedicated one. What cosmic irony allowed this man to become the stepfather of a model rebel like Chloe? Or maybe it was having David for a stepfather that turned Chloe rebellious. She could hardly decide the real reason leading to this awkward relationship.

"Who is she? You know I don't like having strangers in my house, Chloe."

" _She_ -" Chloe emphasize. "-is no stranger. Her name is Max and, in fact, we've known her longer than _you_. So don't pull that bullshit here."

"Max?" Joyce asks stepping out from the kitchen. "As in Max Caulfield? Oh my goodness!"

The woman quickly walks over and grabs Max into a hug instantly putting a stop to the brewing argument between Chloe and David. Max is happy to return the gesture and be enveloped in the warm aura Joyce gives off as a matter of course.

"I often thought of this day." Joyce says smiling as a she pulls back. Her eyes burn with unshed tears making Max's own eyes water. "The day when you'd return like a long lost daughter. Welcome home, Max."

"I'm glad to be here, Joyce."

Her voice cracked and she blushes realizing how it makes her look, but Joyce merely laughs lightly.

"Are you staying for dinner?"

"Yep, she is." Chloe answers for her. "She's staying the night too."

"Perfect. I was just going to make potato salad, deviled eggs, and biscuits, but since you're here, I'll add in some of my world famous pancakes."

"Yes! Please!" Max laughs.

"I knew you'd like it! Now you go have a seat while I get it ready. The both of you sit too, Chloe and David."

Joyce's voice was much harder with them than it was with her. David flinches and obligingly sits at the table. Chloe follows suit sitting beside Max. They fall into silence, but it is the kind of silence that is filled with unspoken words, questions, and observations.

The tension between Chloe and her stepfather is harsh. Out of the glances of her eyes, Max can see how stiff Chloe's shoulders are and how she looks everywhere but in David's direction.

Her stepfather, however, has no such problems. David openly examines both Chloe and Max as the latter discovers after she accidentally meets his eyes while trying to glance at him. Afterwards, Max feels as though David is trying to tear her to pieces with his eyes alone.

This fits with what she knows of him as Blackwell's security guard, but it's also surprising to see he brings the same attitude home. How such a man landed a woman like Joyce is beyond Max's comprehension.

A half an hour later, Joyce walks over placing several dishes on the table. Joyce and David got the salad, eggs, and biscuits while Chloe and Max got eggs, biscuits, and, of course, pancakes with fresh honey.

Being the least antagonistic of the entire family, Joyce is also the one to lead them through the family prayers. Max also gets the distinct sense that Joyce may be the only one to be entirely sincere about it and the same sense tells her the woman knew that too.

At last, they dig in. Well, that is Max is the only one who really ate. As soon as Joyce said 'Amen', Max greedily cut out several layers of pancakes – the portion that had the most honey, of course – and hungrily shoves it into her mouth. It is her first meal since breakfast and the delay made it more heavenly than usual.

Afterwards, however, she glances around and notices everyone else seems to be engaged in some type of silent battle. Chloe is taking small bites of a biscuit and chewing very slowly while glaring up at David now and then. David returns the gesture and Joyce looks sternly between the two as if acting as a silent mediator.

Max cringes at this display. She wonders if there was something special about tonight or if every dinner is the same in which case she wonders how they could possibly live like this. It effectively kills the mood and makes table conversation practically impossible.

Joyce makes an effort, however, God bless her. She didn't want Max to associate her household with tension and bad moods, so she tries her best to lighten things. She clears her throat and smiles at the young girl.

"So Max, tell us about yourself. You're attending Blackwell, I assume?"

Nodding in confirmation, Max gets out in-between bites of pancakes, "Yes, Joyce. I'm trying to study photography and Blackwell has one of the best instructors in the country, Mark Jefferson."

"Wonderful, dear." Joyce smile. "And how did you meet back up with Chloe here?"

Max glances over just in time to see her friend tensing up even further. Chloe looks at her too obviously trying to give her a message, though Max can already guess what it is. Obviously, telling the real truth about them meeting when she was blackmailing someone and almost getting shot for it is out of the question.

Feeling eyes on her, Max looks over at David to see the man eyeing her and Chloe suspiciously. He could hardly have guessed what kind of message is being passed between the two, but whatever he's imagining likely puts both in a bad light. Max can only take comfort in that it's no matter what he's imagining, it's probably not anywhere as bad as the truth.

"We…" Max hesitates. "met in the parking lot at Blackwell. Chloe was putting up posters of her friend and saw me. We chatted a bit and I decided to come with her to catch up."

Joyce's smile saddens a bit. "Well, to think one of Chloe's habits actually resulted in a bit of good for once. Sorry for being nosy, Max. I was just interested in knowing how we came to get you back."

"Actually, I'm interested too."

Their attention turns to David who gives Max an examining look. Max returns a guarded stare unable to decipher waiting to see what he would say. Both Joyce's and Chloe's face seems to tighten as if in anticipation of something about to go wrong and, as a result, Max becomes even more wary.

"I think I know you. You're that new girl who came on a photography scholarship, right? Chosen by Jefferson himself. I've also seen you with Kate Marsh a few times." She nods surprised at David's intimate knowledge on the details of her arrival and his mention of Kate. "What I'm curious about is how you got to be friends with Chloe? What's your relationship with her?"

Chloe puts her head into her hands. "Oh God, do you have to do that fucking interrogator shit here?"

" _Chloe!_ " Joyce hissed. "Watch your language at the dinner table!"

"What? It's a simple question." David defends himself. "I just want to get to know Chloe's friends."

"It's okay." Max says hoping to stave off any arguments. "Uh, Chloe and I were friends as kids. We…sort of lost contact for a bit." Chloe snorts at the word 'a bit'. "When I came back, it was a surprise to see her again and so different from what I remember. So I guess you could say we're just old friends who reunited."

David nods slowly. "I can see where you're coming from. Joyce's reaction to seeing you was surprising to me. I wish you had better selection in friends-" Max blinks wondering who David was referring to. "-but so far, I like you better than Chloe's last friend. Hopefully, you'll be a good influence on her."

"Oh, here we go again!" Chloe shouts in exasperation. "Listen to you two. 'Chloe's habits did something good for once', 'a good influence on Chloe'. I can't do anything right, can I?"

Tension tightens Joyce's face. "Chloe, we did not mean it that way."

"How did you fucking mean it then?"

"Don't talk to your mother that way!" David puts his utensils down giving Chloe a hard stare. "We're just saying that Max might be the first good thing you've brought home in years. Before, if it wasn't drugs, that fucking Rachel, or some other bullshit, it-"

Max shrinks into her seat as Chloe jumps up in anger. Despite the efforts to try to avoid it, an argument is going to break out, and she gets the inkling that this isn't the first or the last.

"Did you bring up Rachel again? What? Being a straight A, model student isn't good enough for you?" Chloe gestures violently with her finger. "What the hell does someone have to do to get your approval? Rachel is as good of a person as someone could possibly get!"

David stands up too. "Rachel Amber is a two-faced, manipulative druggie who uses everyone she comes near. She doesn't care about anyone, except herself. She spends half the time with that dealer scumbag, Frank Bowers, and the only reason-"

He didn't get to finish. Chloe snatches her plate and hurls it towards David who dodges at the last second. He trips over his chair falling as the plate smashes against the wall behind him spilling food content onto the floor. Chloe's unthinking action also sends several table wares on the table onto the floor.

The shock of it has Max reeling and she ducks out of her chair to cover herself against the kitchen counter. Over the sound of the smashing plates, Max hears Joyce yells for both of them to calm down. Both ignore her.

"Fuck you, asshole! Don't you ever talk about Rachel like that again! I'll kill you!" Chloe shouts her voice cracking.

Max, her arms still covering her head, peeks out fearfully to see what's happening. Chloe is crying and trembling uncontrollably. David has scrambled back up after his dodge and is glaring at her barely containing his anger. Chloe rushes past and they all hear her footsteps running upstairs and the sound of a door opening and slamming.

In the ensuing silence of the room, Max hears Joyce cries. Feeling wetness against her arms, she touches her cheeks to realize that she is also crying. David is breathing so heavily that each inhale and exhale sounds overwhelming in the room.

"Joyce, I'm…sorry." He finally says.

Then he begins cleaning up. He picks up the various fallen objects, Chloe's plate of food, and begins the process of returning the room to something resembling normalcy. Joyce remains seated at the table with her face in her hands.

Max slowly gets up off the ground. She sniffles and tries to hold back anymore tears wiping away at her face repeatedly. After putting some plates in the sink, David turns around and stops as if remembering her presence.

"Max, uh, do you want me to drive you home?" He stutters unsure of himself. "Just let me clean up a bit and we'll go to my car."

"No t-thanks, David. I-" Max stops having to wipe away at more tears and to steady her voice. "Blackwell is on c-curfew now so I can't go back. I'll just…go s-see Chloe."

David nods absently. Being Blackwell's security, he likely knows that already but his head is probably muddled and unable to think straight.

Max walks away from the scene and heads upstairs. She isn't at all sure if she is ready or able to help Chloe deal with her emotions. Even at her best, she wouldn't be that great at it and she is in a terrible state right now. Nonetheless, she knew Chloe is no doubt feeling very bad right now and she wanted to do whatever she can.

She stops in front of Chloe's room wiping away the remaining tears and takes a deep breath. Even through the door, she can hear Chloe sobbing. Another deep breath and Max goes in. Her friend is sitting in her chair with legs on the windows sill looking far more relaxed than she must really feel. She is smoking a cigarette trying to control her sobbing.

Still nervous about whether she's doing the right thing, her fears are assuaged when the other girl turns and tries to smile invitingly putting her cigarette into an ashtray. With her tear-streaked face, it didn't really work but Max gets the idea.

She also gets the idea to go over and wrap her arms around Chloe burying the latter's face into her shoulders.

"M-Max? Wha…?"

"I just thought that you might like a shoulder to cry on."

A pause. "Yeah, I do like that. Thanks, Max."

Chloe's shoulder tremble as small gasps of sobbing comes through now and then. Max feels her shoulder quickly become moist with tears, but ignores it figuring that allowing her to let it all out will ultimately be beneficial.

Feeling Chloe's body become heavier, Max gets the idea to lead them towards Chloe's bed. There, the two fall down lying next to each other. They shifted a bit and Chloe's head now rest against Max's chest with her sobbing having died down a lot though she sniffles repeatedly.

Max had thought they would lie like that in silence for the remainder of the night, but Chloe leans away from her and breaks the quiet.

"God, I feel like such a fucking asshole right now." Chloe says through her sniffling. "I shouldn't have thrown my plate like that, but I couldn't help it. When he started saying that shit, I couldn't take it."

"Rachel is not like that, Max. Don't believe that asshole." Max remains silent. "Yeah, she does some drugs, but who doesn't? It doesn't stop her from getting good grades."

"She is definitely not two faced. She is a good person, Max, and she cares about others. She cares about _me_. She told me she was going to LA and she wanted me to come with her. We were going to have fun together and get away from this hellhole before she disappeared."

Max swallows a lump in her throat understanding a bit more the source of Chloe's intense anger. David had hit some very sore spots and possibly insecurities she had in her relationship with Rachel. Her explosion is her defense mechanism trying to protect the little bit of security she has left in Arcadia Bay.

Reaching out, she clutches onto Chloe's shoulders. The other girl looks at Max. Against the moonlight, Max can still make out the tear streaks on her face and her reddened eyes. Briefly, she wonders how she looks to Chloe too.

"I'm sorry about what happened, Chloe. Rachel sounds like a wonderful person and you're lucky to have found her."

Max isn't entirely sure if what she is saying is the right thing, but it is what came to her heart. Chloe gives her a shaky smile and wipes away the last remnants of her previous sobs.

"Thanks, Max. She _is_ a wonderful person." Chloe leans forward into Max again. "I just want to find her again. I want to find her and run far away from this place with her."

Max nods against Chloe. Their touching bodies seem to allow Chloe to share her own feelings directly with her. That moment, Max envied Rachel. Whoever she is, she must be a genuinely special person to have Chloe search for her relentlessly and defend her against accusations.

If only she had someone like that in the world. Someone who could make her feel like the world is alright just by thinking about them.


	3. Chapter 03

**Chapter 03**

Max awakens to the feeling of sunlight on her face.

The vestige of sleep lifts from her as she blinks repeatedly trying to acclimate to the morning. Her senses, memories, and thoughts slowly return and she becomes aware of someone clutching onto her. Already guessing who it is, Max looks down and a small smile lights her face seeing the messy blue hair of Chloe with her face nuzzled against her.

She can't really recall how last night ended or when they fell asleep, but those details seem unimportant in the morning. Wiggling her feet, Max feels it bump against Chloe's shins. She lifts her head to see how they're positioned noting Chloe has her arms around her waist.

Lifting Chloe's left arm first to begin the process of untangling them both, Max wiggles and squirms trying to juggle getting out without waking Chloe. Just as she finally extricated Chloe's arm and maneuver herself into a sitting position, her friend groans and smacks her lips as her eyes flutter opens.

Max lets out a defeated sigh thinking of the wasted effort. Beside her, Chloe pushes herself up and sidles up beside Max laying her head on the smaller girl's shoulders.

"Morning." Chloe mumbles. The sunlight catches her eyes making her squint. "Goddamn, Max. What is it – the crack of dawn? Do you even have any classes now?"

"I don't think it's the crack of dawn, Chloe." She says shaking her head. "Look how bright it is behind your blinds."

Chloe mumbles incoherently. She yawns not bothering to cover her mouth and stretches out her arms as wide as she could. Afterwards, she smacks her lips a bit more, pats Max on the head, and gets up walking out the door without even bothering to close it. A moment later, the sound of a running shower tells Max where Chloe went.

Left alone, Max's eyes roam the room now seeing it without the distraction of dinner fights. The first area to catch her eyes is wall near the door. Like much of the rest of the room, it is decorated with various posters, magazine pages, and so on, but what really drew Max's eyes is the drawing of what appears to be Chloe's face with the words 'Everybody lies. No exceptions.'

To the right above the door were the words 'One day your life will flash before your eyes' and it is situated directly above a poster titled 'Death on Demand'. Max's eyes continue circling the room pausing slightly on the wall before Chloe's closet. There were the words 'Fuck off my head'.

Turning directly behind her, the wall behind the bed has the words 'Just gotta let her go' at the top and a disturbing 'I can't sleep' at the bottom. The wall to the right of the bed has a more inspirational 'I rather have a life of 'oh wells' than a life of 'what ifs'…right above the words 'Fuck off'.

Chloe's room has changed drastically since they were children and the changes depress Max. Even the things that should have filled her with nostalgic joy had been defiled. The chart on the wall that had been used to measure Chloe's height has been scribbled all over with various curses written in-between.

The room they once played in reflecting childish fun has changed alongside its owner to reflect cynicism and teen anger.

Looking around, she sees her bag sitting on the floor. She walks over and fishes inside until she gets her camera. Glancing at the room again, she takes a moment to frame, then snaps a shot. Another photo for her binder and another keepsake for Max Caulfield.

An ache in her stomach reminds her that she is famished. Yesterday, her only real meal had been breakfast. Most of her afternoon was spent with Victoria and Chloe while dinner ended up…getting interrupted before she even finished a third of it. She grabs her phone from the bedside table to distract from the hunger.

The sound of footsteps catches her attention. Chloe walks in and the only indication she had showered is that her hair is damp and well combed. Otherwise, she appears much the same. She's even wearing the same clothes from yesterday.

She walks over and offers Max a hand smiling. Grasping her outstretched hand, Max gets pulled up out of bed. She loses her balance a bit and falls into Chloe who merely laughs. Chloe faces Max towards the door.

"Alright, Big Max, it's your turn." Chloe says giving Max's butt a light slap to push her forward. "Unless you want to go around smelling like me."

Giggling, Max responds, "That's alright. Be right back."

She walks out the door and heads towards the bathroom. Her memories were good enough from her childhood days spent here that she didn't even need time to think where it would be.

The lights were still on from when Chloe was here. Max shuts the door to remove her clothes. She pauses before taking off her underwear thinking about the next few steps. She'll have to borrow a number of Chloe's items – namely her toothbrush and towel. She'll also have to wear the same set of clothes.

She hesitated not sure if Chloe would mind if she borrows those things. She'll definitely have to at least borrow the toothbrush, but on a hunch, Max tries opening the drawers to see if there were extra towels she could use.

Her hunch turned out right and the top drawer had plenty of extra towels. She takes one out, but pauses as something else catches her eyes. To the right side is a prescription bottle of something called 'Fluoxetine' and it is prescribed to Chloe.

A touch of concern alights within her. She doesn't know what fluoxetine does, but the fact that it's prescription medicine tells her it's not something good.

Biting her bottom lip, Max closes the drawer and takes off her undergarment. Going into the shower, she takes the showerhead and starts from the top.

She mindlessly sprays water over her body as her head is more preoccupied with so many other matters. Foremost of all is her upcoming classes, Kate's texts from yesterday, her hunger, Chloe and David Madsen, and Victoria.

Last is definitely not least there. Victoria wants to talk about what happened in the bathroom. That might be a simple talk, but it also brings up questions of those 'visions'. Max had been more than willing to write them off as some sort of strange fluke after they finally stopped, but _God_ , they were terrible beyond imagination.

To begin, they were unbelievable vivid. She calls them 'visions', but it felt like she actually went through them. She remembers the feelings, the sensations, and, most of all, the pain of being shot repeatedly. They're nothing like what she had imagined 'visions' to be.

Except what else could they be called? She had died in them and woke up back in class without any hint of harm in her body.

…yet all the logic in the world can't seem to change the incredible experience as she went through them. It was almost as if she had lived another life.

Max does the only thing she could do faced with such puzzles and the lack of ability to solve them: she pushes them to the back of her mind. She turns off the shower, dries herself with the towel, and put her clothes back on.

She brushes her teeth and washes her face before making her way back to Chloe's room. When she reach the door, though, she freezes seeing Chloe looking at her phone. The other girl is lying on her stomach facing away from the door and still had not noticed Max's presence.

Even from this distance, Max could clearly see Chloe is reading her text messages. The surprise that caught her upon discovering this scene quickly morphs into anger and she loudly clears her throat. Chloe snaps up in surprise and fumbles with Max's phone dropping it onto the bed. Her face reddens at being caught and Max imagines her own face must show at least some of the anger she feels.

She stomps over and snatches her phone up. "Chloe, I can't believe you!"

"I'm sorry!" She replies clapping her hands together in apology. "I didn't mean to. While you were away, you got a text message and…and it caught my eye because it was someone I knew."

Max furrows her eyes. Who did she and Chloe know in common?

"I know I shouldn't have, but I only intended to read one message then I couldn't stop myself from reading more. I…ahem, may have also read your other text messages too."

Her lips tighten. "I can't believe you, Chloe. We're friends and I love you, but that doesn't give you the right to look into my personal things."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm _sorry_!" Chloe repeats pathetically.

Max picks up her bag and heads for the door. It's not that she _hated_ Chloe for her actions shameless as they were – she just needed some time and space before she inevitably forgives her.

She had intended to leave the house to take the bus to Blackwell. As her hand reaches for the doorknob to leave Chloe's room, though, a hand slams against the door blocking its opening.

"Chloe, take away your hand. Now."

" _Max_! C'mon! You can't be so pissed at just this one…let me make it up to you. We'll go to the lighthouse and just chill. I'll bring us snacks along and we'll just enjoy the view, okay?"

Chloe wraps her arms around Max and one of her fingers tickle Max's chin playfully. "Forgive me? Please? Best friend?"

An exasperated sigh surges out of Max. If nothing else, Chloe is certainly difficult to stay angry at. Besides, on a deeper level, Max feels she has little right to be angry at Chloe considering her own past of abandoning her friend.

"…alright."

The arms let her go, though Chloe does pat her head one last time. Laughing, Chloe runs to throw her jacket back on and get her truck keys. She also runs to a few other places in her room to get a bunch of items, including a pack of cigarettes, some bills, and a few other items Max couldn't make out.

Remembering her schedule, Max makes to put a hold to Chloe's enthusiasm, "Wait, lets me get a rain check on that lighthouse thing."

"What?" Chloe looks disappointed. "Why?"

"Blackwell." The one word is sufficient to get understanding. "My first class is in, like, an hour."

Chloe scowls. "Damn. No big deal, I'll drive you there. Then I'll pick you up after school and we can hang out then." Max nods in agreement. "Alright, my girl, lets get us some food!"

Max silently thank the heavens for them finally getting food. They leave the room and head downstairs, but any thought of food stops immediately upon coming face to face with David Madsen who just comes out of the garage-side entrance.

Feeling her stomach clench, Max braces herself for another horrid fight as David and Chloe scowl darkly at each other. She struggles internally half wishing Joyce was there and half hoping she won't have to put up with another fight. After a short contest, though, David turns away and walks into the kitchen.

Chloe is as surprised as Max at how peacefully things ended. She shrugs and turns towards the table taking one step before stopping and slapping a palm against her head.

"Damn, I knew I forgot something. I'll be back, Max. I'll also see what mom's doing."

She runs upstairs without waiting for a response. Max looks up after her for a moment before going to sit at the table. Almost as if waiting for this moment, David quickly joins her startling her.

"So…Max." David begins immediately. "You say you and Chloe were childhood friends?"

"Uh, yes, David. I used to play here all the time before moving to Seattle."

He nods though his facial expression remains stoic. "And if I may ask, what's your relationship to Kate Marsh?"

The abrupt change in topic startles Max again. Her persistent wariness around David increases. What is the man's deal? He is so incredibly suspicious and Max can't understand why he's suspicious towards _her_. What could she have possibly done that would warrant it? And what is with his obsession with Kate?

"Kate is just a friend." Max says hesitantly. "She's one of the few girls I connected with when I came here to Blackwell."

"What did you two connect over?"

A pause. "Well, I don't really know. We both didn't have many friends. I said 'hi' to her a few times and she responded. One day, I think, she invited me for tea and we've been meeting regularly ever since."

"Max." David hesitates. "Would you say Kate is a party girl?"

The man wants to know something. Max is sure of it. The questions baffle her, though, as to what kind of information he's hoping to get. She's also not sure if the information he's trying to get is about her, Kate, or, through some absurd roundabout way, about someone else altogether.

"Definitely not. Kate is a quiet person and prefers to stay in her dorm studying or reading."

David stoically nods. Another hesitation. "Max, are _you_ someone who likes to party?"

"David, what are you trying to ask me?" She brushes his question aside getting tired of the man's song and dance routine. She just wants to know what he wants.

There is indecision in his eyes for a moment before it hardens. "Do you do drugs?"

The question makes her reel in disbelief. She didn't have the slightest clue as to how or why the ridiculous man got the idea that she is doing drugs. Max has never even touched so much as a cigarette in her life. If it weren't for she and Chloe getting to Joyce's wine as children, she would have never touched a drop of alcohol either.

The question is utterly foolish and, in her growing anger, Max makes it well known.

"No, I don't do drugs. I don't even smoke cigarettes or drink. Why would you ask me such a question?"

"Because of your acquaintance with Kate Marsh."

"Kate does not do drugs or drink either. You're obsessed with her for some reason, David, so shouldn't you know this? She's a model Christian and she's probably as pure as snow."

"I do know her, Max." His voice comes out harsh. "I have reason to believe she's a drug runner."

A chill comes over her at his words and her insides feel as if they're being twisted. Her anger grows rapidly at his accusations. Kate has mentioned this before. Mentioned that she's being bothered by Blackwell's security, though she wouldn't say who. Now Max knows it must be David. She wonders if this is how Chloe felt last night when David brought up Rachel.

"How dare you…!" Max chokes out. "Aren't you supposed to be security? Why are you saying this about Kate?"

Raising his hands defensively, David quickly tries to placate her, "I'm not trying to get your friend jailed, Max. What I really want to do is help her. It's the people making her run that I-"

"Kate is _not_ a drug runner, David! Never on this green Earth would she possibly do something like that!"

"I have seen with my own eyes that-"

"Why are you bullying her? Doesn't she get enough of that already? Why don't you harass those people who pick on her? What about Victoria Chase?"

Briefly, guilt goes through Max for throwing Victoria under a bus but what she says is true. Victoria had been an incredible bully towards Kate and, lately, Max has been hearing rumors of some kind of video that she had a hand in.

It isn't fair that even the school security is targeting her too. Max can't allow this to happen.

"Max, calm down. I'm not bullying your friend." David forces his voice down seeing the girl in front of him becoming more hysterical and her eyes redden in preparation to spill tears. "What I'm saying is indisputable fact. I mean, there's even a video of her being drugged out."

"That's a lie! I don't believe that for a second!"

The two are distracted by the sound of footsteps coming down. At the stairs, Chloe appears alongside Joyce and the two stops upon seeing the scene.

"Oh, for fuck's sake, what did you do now, you asshole?" Chloe says marching towards Max.

"I was just asking her about a potential lead on a drug ring at-"

"He's lying! He's lying!"

Chloe holds Max's head against her chest trying to calm her by rubbing circles on her back as she clings to her trying to fight back tears. Chloe glances at Joyce and notices the woman is glaring daggers at David and the man is trying to avoid looking at her.

She is satisfied at the outcome. Being as much of a hellraiser as she is, Joyce doesn't have much faith in her and would think the argument is as much her fault as David's, but Max is a whole other matter. David will no doubt face hell for putting Max through the same thing he put her through. For once, Joyce will actually take a stand against him.

So there's no need for her to give him a dressing down this time. Instead, she decides to end the whole scene.

"Fuck off, David."

Grinning at his return glare, Chloe leads Max outside and opens her truck's passenger door to let her in. Jogging to the other side, Chloe hops in not even bothering to buckle up and, shortly, they're off towards Blackwell.

"Hey, you okay?" Chloe asks after a few minutes.

Max sniffles. "Yeah, I'm alright. I just can't believe how much of an asshole David is."

Pulling out a cigarette, she snorts. "Welcome to my world. What happened?"

"He was asking weird questions." Max says wiping at her eyes. "First, it was about us, but then he started asking about Kate. A friend of mine. Then he accuses her of being a _drug runner_!" Sniffling again, Max lets out a gasping sigh. "God, we missed breakfast. I'm so hungry right now."

"Check my glove compartment. I stashed energy bars there and I think there's some left."

She opens the glove apartment and there were three more bars. Max takes two. She opens one for herself and opens another handing it to Chloe. Two bites later, Max is finished with the entire bar and she hardly feels any less hungry. Chloe is driving slowly as she alternates between smoking and eating.

"Not that I don't think that was a dick move…" Chloe begins after finishing a bite. "but aren't you overreacting a bit? Bullshit accusations are like low-grade stuff with David."

"You don't understand, Chloe." Max says finishing her bar. "Kate has been bullied really badly. By almost everyone. It tears me apart to see how bad off she has it. What really got to me is that David is our school's security and now he seems to be picking on her too. It isn't right."

"No, it isn't." Chloe agrees. "I'm sorry about that, Max. As you've seen last night too, step-douche is an asshole of the highest order. How Joyce got together with him blows my fucking mind."

"I can't believe it either." Max manages a small smile. "Hey, you keep calling him 'step-douche', but didn't you call him Joyce's boyfriend yesterday?"

Chloe grimaces. "Yeah, I do that every now and then. Usually to piss him off but I sometimes do it even when he's not around. I hate acknowledging that asshole as any kind of father to me. He did marry Joyce and is my stepdad, though. "

Max looks out the window trying to calm her mind. Perhaps Chloe has a point. Baseless accusations should be the least of the possible worries she could experience.

She stares out the window and smiles lightly when she sees two deer ahead on the right side of the road grazing on someone's lawn. They look up now and then, but nothing appears to bother them.

"How _did_ Joyce and David meet anyway?"

Chloe sighs. "I hate this story, but here goes. It was like a few months after you've left, step-douche had- SHIT!"

The shout snaps Max's head around to see Chloe fumbling at the wheel and rubbing harshly at her eyes. Max gasps tensely as the truck veers left and right, but Chloe is able to keep it on the road even during her struggle.

"Max, I got some ash in my eyes! I need to pull over!"

She tries to reach for something and, in the process, accidentally honks her horn. It was a minor thing, but out of the corner of her eyes, Max notices movement. She turns forward to see one of the deer from before has run out directly in front of the truck having been frightened by the honking.

Max tries to shout out to Chloe to stop but it is too late. The deer slams into the truck smashing its front in and the collision sends the animal flying up into the windshield cracking it. She screams as Chloe's previous veer now turns completely out of control and the deer's body is blocking their view.

There is suddenly another impact and Chloe's body flies forward smashing through the windshield. Max's movement is halted by the seatbelts she wears but the belts dig into her body painfully and she recoils in pain. Before she could gather her bearings, though, some sort of object penetrates the dashboard and, suddenly, Max feels a burning sensation in her throat.

She reaches a shaking hand up to touch her throat and pulls away seeing a red splotch. Her lips quiver uncontrollably as she stares at her hand. She looks over at Chloe's unmoving body and tries to call out for her but her voice wouldn't come out. Instead, a liquid gurgling is the best she could manage.

Her body involuntarily falls forward only being held up by the seatbelt. Max's arms go limp and her vision begins to blur and fade even as she tries her hardest to fight it.

The sound of her gurgling fades out completely…and suddenly explodes back into a full shout as Max re-opens her eyes. She thrashes about in panic and confusion hitting a few things in the process.

"Whoa! Whoa, dude!" A voice – Chloe's voice – calls out. "Calm down! What the hell?"

Chloe's arms wrap around Max to prevent her movement. The smaller girl breathes heavily and darts her eyes around trying to gather herself. The sight of Chloe along with her slowly recovering thoughts helps to quell her panic and, after a few minutes, Max realizes that she is in Chloe's room.

The bed is a mess and there are several objects knocked over. Max suspects she is to blame for this, but could hardly care. Tears bubbles to the surface and she leans her face into Chloe and cries pathetically.

Max thinks about how much of her recent time appears to be spent crying and she wanted to stop, but couldn't find the power to. She could still recall the taste of blood in her mouth and the image of an unmoving Chloe.

The same unmoving Chloe who is now holding Max's head against her chest rubbing circles on her back.

"Damn, Max. That must have been one hell of a nightmare."

She didn't respond and they remain in that position. After a time, her sanity demanded a return to some sense of normalcy and she makes an effort to block the still explosive sounds of the car crash from her head.

Choking back more tears, Max pulls away, "Chloe, do you mind if I take a shower first?"

"Uh, yeah, sure." Chloe says unsure of what to make of this change. "We got extra towels in the drawers. Feel free to use it. Oh, borrow my clothes too, if you want."

Max nods accepting. She walks up to Chloe's closet and rifles through some clothes. She checks the size tags to see if they fit. Chloe is taller than her so she'll have to roll up the jeans, but it appears her svelte figure resulted in them generally capable of sharing clothes.

That realization makes Max glance down at her stomach feeling self-conscious, but she shakes it away. No time for that kind of thing.

She pulls out a black 'Anarchy' shirt and blue jeans. The pants drip something on the floor catching her attention. It is some kind of red liquid. Max turns the jeans around and freezes seeing the other side entirely covered in blood. Her body trembles uncontrollably.

"Max?" Chloe calls. "Are you alright? Why are you shaking?"

She blinks. The jeans are…alright. There isn't any sort of blood on it at all. Swallowing heavily, Max takes a deep breath to clear her throat.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks. I'm going to take these."

"Sure. Whatever."

She can still feel Chloe's eyes on her. She gathers up the clothing and turns to head to the door, but stops. She turns around just in time to see Chloe quickly averts her eyes not wanting to appear like she was staring.

Walking back to the bed, Max picks up her phone and puts it in her pocket. No need to let Chloe go snooping a second time. Then she turns and heads to the bathroom. Inside, she takes off her clothes and tries to still her rapid heart.

Placing her clothes on one of the drawers, she turns to head into the showers but stop upon noticing her reflection. Her heart speeds up again. There is a hole in her neck and blood is spilling out.

"Breathe." Max whispers. "It's not real. Breathe."

She blinks and her reflection is back to normal. Swallowing, Max hops into the shower and turns on the water. When she had stayed and scrubbed long enough to feel raw, she steps out, dries herself, and throws on Chloe's clothes.

A quick teeth brushing later, she walks back to her friend's room. Inside, Chloe is reading a magazine and she doesn't even notice Max there. She knocks on the wall alerting Chloe her presence.

"Alright, home girl, it's my turn with the showerhead now."

Chloe leaves and Max takes the moment to fall into the bed. As she lies there unmoving, a scent comes into her nostrils. She sniffs at it repeatedly trying to place the familiar smell before realizing that it smells like Chloe. She thought it was the bed at first, but a bit of investigating reveals that it's coming from her. The clothes she borrowed. So much for showering to not smell like Chloe.

Max pauses. Wait, that comment Chloe made was from the vision.

She falls back onto the bed as troubling thoughts makes its way into her head. For the second day in a row, she has been referring to those 'dreams' as 'visions', but perhaps she didn't give enough credit to the wording she used. They do appear to be 'visions'.

The most realistic fucking visions she's ever heard of, but visions nonetheless. Like the word suggests, they seem to predict the future.

She knew this. She _knew_ this already from what happened yesterday in the bathroom, but she kept being in denial not willing to believe something like this could be real. She had been almost forced to believe it, but when she got out of the bathroom cycle, she was all too happy to go back to denial wanting her life to be normal again.

But her life isn't normal. Not anymore. She had just been able to avoid the truth because there was some reprieve, but this most recent vision proves that nothing changed. It also proved something else.

The terrible hallucinations she just suffered. The memories from the visions which she confuses with what's currently happening. The fact that she's been doing different things and making different decisions based on what she remembers.

All of this proves that, even if she wanted to ignore it, she can't. The mere experience by itself is enough to cause her issues and change her actions. She can continue to try to ignore what's happening, but she would do so to her own peril.

That means she has to start acknowledging their importance and how they seem to very accurately tell her what's going to happen. Aside from small changes here and there mostly resulting from her own changed actions, the events that she saw in her visions seem to happen exactly as she experienced them. Well, up until her death anyway.

That's another thing that bothers her. Why do all her visions seem to end in her death? Are they giving her warnings so as to prevent her dying? To save her?

But then…why did her vision yesterday occur three times over? Wouldn't it have been logical to simply show her what to do once and that would be enough? What kind of 'visions' are these in that they simply recreate the same scenarios over and over again and have her live them over until she gets the correct path?

Something new occurs to Max. A logical inconsistency. If these were some sort of 'Choose Your Adventure' visions that allows her to see what will happen yet still make choices as to see what happens, how is it possible that the one time she seem to get it right is the one time it turns out to not be a vision?

…is it possible she's been looking at this wrong the whole time? That these aren't actually 'visions' but something else altogether?

Her phone vibrates interrupting her thoughts. A memory comes back to her about how Chloe had snooped on her phone because she received a text message from someone Chloe recognized. Max picks up the phone and her eyes widen a bit seeing Victoria's name.

Another hint that the two really do know each other and Max is again left wondering how. How in the world does Chloe know someone like Victoria? What kind of history do they have together?

_Victoria: Hey, lets meet in the parking lot after last period, k?_

Max thinks a second then sends a return text agreeing. Both of them being in the photography program means that, aside from some electives, they share the same schedule. Fact is that they'll see each nearly the entire day. If Victoria wanted to talk about something privately, then it is likely about what they went through.

A headache slowly builds up in Max's head as she thinks about the issue of Nathan. What will they do about him? Luckily, she managed to knock him out without revealing herself, but he will definitely remember Victoria and Chloe. What will he do? Is he somebody to worry about?

She mentally palms herself. Why is she asking? The boy brandished a gun in the girls' bathroom and is insane enough to actually use it. _Of course_ he is somebody to worry about.

The sound of approaching footsteps cuts off her thoughts just as Chloe pops in. Her friend sighs dramatically doing a bit of a twirl and laughing afterwards. Chloe walks around the room grabbing several of her belongings, then she holds out a waiting hand.

Max smiles and grasps it giggling as Chloe lifts her up afterwards. "Boy, you're in a good mood!"

"What?" Chloe playfully slaps her arm. "When aren't I in a good mood? Don't answer that. C'mon, girl, lets move out!"

She puts her arm around Max's waist and they leave the room together. As they were about to head down the stairs, though, Max hesitates stopping Chloe too.

"Max?"

"Uh, you know, perhaps we should call Joyce downstairs too. We shouldn't have breakfast without the whole family, right?"

Chloe pause. "Huh, I didn't even know my mom was still up here. Hey, mom! Are you up here?"

"Yeah!" Joyce responds from within her room. "Hold on, I'll be out!"

They wait patiently and, minutes later, Joyce appears. Her smile is a bit strained compared to yesterday, but nonetheless, Max warms at seeing her. The three head down together where David already prepared toast and eggs.

Everything seems to stop when David and Chloe meet each other's eyes. Joyce, in particular, tenses. However, after a short staring contest, David turns away and heads into the kitchen. From inside, he calls out.

"Uh, what would you ladies like to drink?"

Joyce is the first to respond perhaps hoping to help keep things civil. "Just water, David."

"Orange juice." Chloe grunts out.

"Orange juice too, please."

They all go to sit at the table. Max's mouth waters a bit at the toast and eggs. Perhaps for the first time since breakfast yesterday, she'll actually get something of a full meal. After a small prayer is said for the meal, they dig in.

A few wary glances are thrown around from memories of last night's fight, but this particular meal seems to go much better. Max doesn't know whether it's because it's too early to fight or because last night is still too fresh, but she appreciates it all the same.

"So girls, what do you both plan to do today?" Joyce asks.

She directs the question towards the both of them, but Max gets the distinct impression Joyce is really aiming the question towards Chloe. Really, she is kind of curious too. What is Chloe up to nowadays when she's, uh, not blackmailing, searching for a missing girl, or hanging out in a junkyard?

"Well, I do have some classes to attend at Blackwell today." Max decides to respond first. "Language of Photography, Science, and Media Literacy."

Joyce smiles and gives an acknowledging sound of awe. Then her eyes shift to Chloe expectantly. Max notices that David has slowed his eating meaning he is paying more attention too.

"Well, ahem," Chloe begins, though she doesn't meet her parents' eyes. "I was thinking of putting up more posters. For Rachel, you know. I also wanted to show Max around a bit since it's been a while since she's been back here."

Nodding slowly, Joyce responds, "I think that is a good idea, Chloe. Max, how long have you've been at Blackwell now? Have you made any friends? You must be so lonely and Chloe could certainly use a friend too."

"For only a month now, Joyce. I've met a few nice people. Alyssa, Dana, and-" Max hesitates. "-Kate. We all get along pretty well. None of them are quite like Chloe, though. They don't share the history we do."

Chloe nods and pulls Max's head in rubbing her knuckles against her skull. "That's right! First Mate Max is now back together with her captain! Arcadia Bay is headed for so much trouble, it doesn't even know!"

Max giggles at the nickname they used for each other as children pretending to be pirates. Chloe, being the bolder of the two, had always been 'Captain Chloe' while she, of course, was 'First Mate Max'. Together, they both went on 'adventures', which often consisted of playing in the backyard or around the neighborhood.

"Well, look at you two." Joyce gives a grin. A genuine grin not marred by ulterior motives towards her daughter. "Aren't you two just precious? You know what? Why don't you two stop by the diner today while you're traveling about? I'll be happy to provide a meal to sate your adventurers' appetites."

Chloe lets Max go. "I can even have the grilled steak again?"

"Oh, alright." Joyce sighs good-naturedly. "But just this once."

Her daughter clenches her fist in success while Joyce just rolls her eyes. Max bathes in the warm atmosphere that is so pleasant and takes a bite of the toast. Every now and then, she glances at David but he makes no mention of Kate perhaps too afraid of causing a scene in front of Joyce or perhaps he's more docile now with Chloe around.

The rest of the meal continues with just bits of smalltalk between David and Joyce. Max is the first to finish her breakfast and feeling so much better for the first full meal in so long. Chloe is the next to finish hers.

Max takes up her plate along with Chloe's and leaves it in the sink after running water over them. Chloe says good-bye to her mother – and ignores David, of course – then gestures for Max to come along.

The two of them exit the house and gets into Chloe's truck. Thinking over everything that happened up to now reminds Max once again that she must take the visions seriously. As she suspected would happen, her prior knowledge resulted in her doing many things differently which then changed everything. No Chloe snooping on her phone and no David and her fighting about Kate. It was an entirely different morning.

All thoughts on this cease, though, as they take off.

Max breaks into a sweat suddenly remembering what is 'supposed' to happen next. Her breathing hitches a little, but she quickly reposes herself. She checks her seatbelt ensuring it's tight against her body. She also glances at the dashboard but is uncertain on how to protect herself against anything flying out of it.

Regardless, she's a little more prepared for what may happen. She takes a moment to refresh herself on how it came about. She had asked how David and Joyce met and Chloe started explaining when she suddenly shouts out. Things went completely out of control because she got cigarette ash in her eyes.

Then one of the deer she was looking at runs in front of the truck causing a collision and things went from bad to worse. The truck hits something, Chloe and her flies forward, though her seatbelt and the dashboard stops her momentum, then something hits her throat, and…it ends.

Max swallows and glances over at her friend noticing something wrong immediately. "Chloe, please buckle up."

"I don't need to. I always drive without buckling."

"You don't know what could happen, though!"

"Max, you sound like my mom. I told you – I'm a pro at this."

Chloe reaches into her pocket and Max feels her stomach clench when she takes out a pack of cigarettes. Putting a cig into her mouth, Chloe reaches for a lighter when the cig is snatched away.

"Hey, what the-?"

"No, please. No smoking."

"Christ, Max, what is up with you today? First, you wake up screaming bloody murder and hitting me in the face, now you're trying to nag me to death?"

"I'm not trying to nag you, Chloe. I'm just concerned for your health! Please!"

"Alright, alright! Just…" Chloe sighs. "Just stop with the puppy eyes, okay? I won't smoke."

When Max didn't answer, Chloe looks over to see her staring intensely ahead. Following her line of sight, she sees two deer grazing on somebody's lawn. As the truck passes the deer, Max turns her head fixating her sight on them. After they disappear, she lets out a relieved sigh…as if she was afraid a bunch of deer were going to attack them or something.

A tingling feeling comes into the back of Chloe's mind as her thoughts meld to form some kind of idea. Something isn't quite there with Max. Something is really off about her.

What happened with the deer and waking up is one thing, but that isn't all. There's the whole hiding in the bathroom deal. Something about the story just seems too…unreal. As if she just made up it, but for the life of her, Chloe can't imagine why Max would be hiding in the back of the bathroom.

Even if the story was true, though, for her to just jump out and smash a giant sign into Nathan's neck? When they were kids, she often had to coax Max onto a swing because she was afraid of going too high. Has she really grown up to be capable of knocking out gun wielding lunatics?

Chloe isn't ready to believe that and one other thing keeps her from believing: the sense that Max is hiding something. Since they've met yesterday, there's been some kind of tenseness around her and a kind of look. She can't describe it, but it's the feeling she used to get around…around Rachel before she disappeared. That she was hiding something.

Now she's getting it from Max? Should she say something or wait for her to disappear? If so, what can she say?

Blackwell appears in the distance and Chloe pulls into the parking lot. Max looks over and gives her a light smile.

"Thanks, Chloe. Sorry for me getting all weird on you, but I was just a little scared, okay? Anyway, text me sometime."

Chloe reaches out and grabs her hand stopping her from leaving. Max turns and looks at her questioningly.

"Hey, uh, I was serious when I told Joyce I wanted to take you around town. I already showed you American Rust, but we should head to the lighthouse sometime. For memories, y'know?"

Max smiles. "I…would like that, Chloe. How about I'll text you sometime today and see if we can get together?"

"Right, that sounds good." Chloe nods letting go of Max's hand. "Max, I'm really happy to see you again. Not just because you saved my ass from Nathan, but, well, I was getting a bit lonely and it's good to have a friend around to cheer me up. Not just any friend, but you specifically. I…feel a little warmer with you around."

"Chloe…" Pausing a bit, Max smiles lightly. "So does this mean you forgive me for the five year silence?"

"Hell no!" Chloe laughs. "Well, maybe, a little. You'll really have to earn the forgiveness, Maxipad."

"Gross, Chloe!" Max giggles. She looks behind her to see students disappearing off the Blackwell lawn indicating the time. "I think classes is about to start, so I gotta go now."

She hesitates and looks unsure. After a moment, she quickly leans back inside the car and pecks Chloe on the cheek. "I'm really happy we got here safely and…I'm happy we got to spend time together. I'll text you, okay?"

She runs off and disappears through the front entrance before Chloe could respond. Not that she would have been able to say anything even if she hadn't left. After the peck, her face must have been blushing like crazy. She can even feel the heat on her cheek where Max's lips still lingers a little.

Touching that part of he, Chloe falls against her seat wondering what to do now and wishing Blackwell's classes were over already.

What she told her mom about her plans was only half true. She wanted to hang out with Max, that's for sure…but the Rachel posters? She blanketed half the town with them already. The supply she has left is just meant to replace the ones that got lost for whatever reason.

Her spirit dampens. Thinking about Rachel always wreaks havoc on her mind and heart. Not just now with her disappearance but even before. Playing with Rachel has always been the equivalent of playing with fire.

Still, she wants to find her. Find her, make her explain everything that happened…and maybe see if she still wants to go to Los Angeles.

Maybe, though, maybe they could take Max along.


	4. Chapter 04

**Chapter 04**

In the parking lot, Max passes the time looking at new cameras on her phone. She'll never buy them as they tend to cost far more than she has, but lusting after them gives her enough satisfaction. Every now and then, she glances up at passing students or cars.

Several glances later, she sees the person she's been waiting for: Victoria Chase.

However she had imagined their first meeting after the bathroom incident to go, Max had not imagined it would start by Victoria giving her a once-over and then looking down her nose at her afterwards. She then leans against the wall making point of being a few feet away.

"Well, well, Max, I see you have a new fashion style. What look are you going for? The broke ass, garbage dwelling punk look?"

Max looks down at the shirt emblazed with the word 'Anarchy' across it. 'Broke ass'? 'Garbage dwelling'? Of all the insults Victoria threw in that single sentence, the only one she can see is 'punk'. There can be expensive punk clothing and Victoria has no idea how much this shirt cost…even if Max knows that Chloe is poor and probably can't afford expensive clothing.

'Garbage dwelling', though? The shirt does give off Chloe's scent, but it's not like Chloe hangs around a dump. Well, aside from that junkyard she hangs around in…which doesn't smell that bad anyway. Besides, Max kind of likes Chloe's smell.

"Victoria, lay off, alright? I thought we were here to talk about more important things."

"We are. I just couldn't help but notice this… _thing_ you're wearing. I had to say something."

Max frowns. What exactly happened? Yesterday, she was concerned for her and was actually nice. Was it because of fear from the incident being only recent? Has it worn off now and she is back to normal?

"This isn't mine. I borrowed this from my friend Chloe."

"I know." Victoria scowls. "You should have stuck to your own style. I liked that better."

Blinking, Max wonders if that was a backhanded compliment. Shaking it off, she tries to get back on topic. "Weren't we going to talk?"

"Don't be ridiculous." Victoria says. "We are here to simply meet up. We're not talking anything until we get back to the dorms. I'm…feeling kind of exposed out here."

Without another word, she turns and walks in the direction of the dorms. Max stares at her back for a moment before awkwardly following. The entire way back, she follows a few feet behind Victoria feeling like a servant or something. At no point did Victoria try to rectify the situation by pausing or even initiating conversation.

If anything, her body language gives off vibes that this is exactly how she wants it. Victoria's hard eyes are held straight and her tense shoulders and stiff walk give off 'don't fuck with me' vibes.

Max once again finds herself examining Victoria's clothes. Today, she is wearing a classy black designer shirt that fishnets around her arm showing off smooth skin. A bit lower, she's also appearing to be sporting some pretty stylish denim shorts which accentuate the sway of Victoria's hips.

She'll give it to the Queen Bee of Blackwell, whatever she decides to wear, she always wears it well. One can also be certain it'll cost enough to bankrupt Max if that designer label on the denim shorts is any indication.

" _Ahem_."

Her eyes snap up to see Victoria giving her a pointed stare. Max blushes heavily realizing this is not the first time Victoria has caught Max looking at her.

"Sorry." She mumbles.

To her great relief, Victoria turns forward again and lets the issue go. From that point on, Max makes a point to keep her eyes on the back of Victoria's head. Or glancing at the various people she passes who looks at her. Of which there seem to be a lot.

Actually, there does seem to be a lot of people staring at her. She recognizes some of them as people from the Vortex Club too. As she begins to wonder if there's something on her face, something gets shoved into her arms startling her.

She looks down to realize Victoria had shoved her purse into her arms. She looks up at Victoria but the other girl had already continued forward. Max mutters a 'you're welcome' despite knowing there was no chance Victoria had thanked her. Hell, she hadn't even asked Max to carry her stuff.

When the got into the dorms, a sense of relief goes through her now that there were less people around staring at her. There were audible voices, but the other dorm members were in their rooms and weren't around to see Max and Victoria walk in.

"We're going to your room. Come on."

Briefly, she wonders why her room and not Victoria's but she figures it doesn't really matter in the end. As they passed Kate's door, Max glances at it and tries to listen for any sounds, but it is quiet. Promising herself to text Kate later to set up a time for their tea date, Max continues onward. Victoria leads the way into Max's room.

Inside, she drops Victoria's purse onto her couch while the blonde makes herself comfortable on her bed. She sits crosslegged waiting patiently for Max to get comfortable – a small favor for which Max is thankful for. She decides to drop onto the couch letting out a sigh.

"So Victoria, what do we do?" Max kicks off the inevitable talk. "About Nathan, I mean."

Victoria lets out a sound of disgust. "Come sit here so I can show you something."

Max groans wondering why she just didn't ask Max to sit there to begin with instead of waiting for her to get comfortable first then asking her to move. Nonetheless, she does as asked and drops onto her bed. Victoria scooches over then drops her phone onto Max's lap.

"Read my text messages from Nathan."

Max does as instructed. Her phone's home screen is filled with notification bubbles informing of numerous missed calls, video calls, emails, and text messages. Checking her texts, she had to scroll down pages to finally find Nathan's name. She presses the text to begin reading.

_Nathan: Vic, just stay out of this and let me handle it. This is serious business here and ur not involved._

That was the latest text and it was dated last night. The other messages Nathan sent wasn't too friendly either. As she scrolls down, she reads a number of curses, threats, and arguments – from both Nathan and Victoria.

It appears Victoria's last message to Nathan was 'we're not through here, Nate'. Before that was a back and forth argument in which Victoria repeatedly tries to defuse Nathan and get him to talk to her. If nothing, Max will give it to Victoria for being so determined to talk to Nathan, but that seems to be a lost cause.

She gets to a section dated shortly after the bathroom incident. The timestamp seem to indicate the texts came when Max was actually with Victoria. She must have had her phone silenced then.

_Victoria: Nate, what the hell do u think ur doing? What was all that about? What was happening?_

_Nathan: It was just something small that has nothing to do with u. Vic, what were u doing in the bathroom?_

_Victoria: It's a bathroom. I was going to use it to refresh. And this is not something small. U had a fucking GUN Nate. U were aiming it at a girl and u were going to shoot her._

_Nathan: No I wasn't. I was just scaring her. I wasn't really going to shoot her._

_Victoria: Honestly, I don't care if that piece of shit does get shot but you would get arrested. Why would u even doing this?_

_Nathan: It's private. Don't worry about it._

_Victoria: I am worried about it. Nate, we have to talk. Please._

The newer texts devolve into the argument that Max already read. What fixated her on this section was the fact that Victoria called Chloe 'a piece of shit' and says she doesn't care if she did get shot. A surge of anger rises inside her.

She looks up coldly at Victoria who stares back unflinching. "Victoria, what is this? Why did you say this?"

"Say what?"

Max holds up her phone pointing to the offending texts. "You called Chloe a piece of shit and said she could get shot? Why?"

She sighs exasperatedly. "Max, first off, I don't like punk trash, alright?"

Internally, Max notes that 'punk trash' is just one among the many, many types of people Victoria doesn't like. Other types she knows about includes 'waif hipsters' and 'abstinent Christians'.

"Secondly, I didn't know she was your friend at the time. So cut me some slack, okay?"

This response didn't exactly satisfy Max, but it does make her feel slightly better to know that Victoria is willing to lay off a bit. In reality, she had expected Victoria to respond with apathy or anger, so this is actually better.

"It's…alright. Just don't do it again, okay? Chloe is pretty important to me."

Victoria scowls. "I noticed. Frankly, I don't see why."

Max pauses. She recalls the few times Chloe seem to give indication that she's familiar with Victoria. That 'familiarity' seems to not be a very friendly one, which would normally make her think they were really well acquainted at some point.

There is one sure way to find out.

"Say, by the way, do you happen to know Chloe?"

Victoria rolls her eyes. "Yes, I know her. Well, not directly, but through our mutual acquaintance, Rachel."

"You knew Rachel Amber?"

A strange, indecipherable look comes over her face. "Yeah, I knew her. Wish I didn't." A sigh escapes her. "I knew her before coming to Blackwell, but haven't seen her for a while because she fucked off to somewhere no one knows."

"I was actually hoping to forget her, but there are remnants of her every-fucking-where here. Aside from all the posters, it seems like everyone knows her. The teachers know her, people from my club know her, and even the goddamn hired help knows her."

Max nods remembering Chloe mentioned that. "The Vortex Club, right? Yeah, I heard she was a part of that."

"Yeah, and she was banging half the fucking club too. Oops, did I say 'half'? I meant the _entire_ club. Christ, she was a straight A kid, but I'll be damned if I know how she had time to get those A's when she seem to spend all her time sucking dick."

Max reels at the accusation – revelation? – and she stares at Victoria unhappily. The latter notices this and sighs.

"Pardon my French. I guess I shouldn't say things like that around you when Price is her lover."

Max reels again at the information. In the junkyard, she had called Rachel 'a friend', but if Victoria's right, then that put Chloe's actions in a new light. Chloe's far off look as she describes Rachel as a near-perfect person, her intense anger as David ragged on her, and her sobbing as she tells Max she wants to find Rachel and run away with her.

It makes so much sense, but she didn't see it at all at the time. How could she have missed it?

Noticing Max's wide eyes, Victoria hums in surprise, "You didn't know that? Price is the one that plastered those damn missing poster everywhere."

"I knew _that_ , but…I thought it was just a 'best friends' kind of thing. I mean, if I go missing, Chloe would probably do the same too."

Victoria laughs mockingly and Max feels a sting inside. "Yeah, right, Caulfield. Maybe she would if you give her some ass first. Otherwise, she doesn't give a shit about you."

"That's not true!" Max says narrowing her eyes. "Why would you say that?"

"I'm just saying anyone who follows Rachel around like a slave can't have very good judgment. Not like there's many in this hick town that's really any good, but even then, falling in love with the town bicycle? How pathetic."

Her eyes burn, but Max fights back the tears valiantly. She's been crying enough and tears never help. It didn't before and it wouldn't in this situation.

"Victoria, after seeing you yesterday, I know you can be a nice person. Other times, though, you're…you're just so _cruel_." Max says. "And I don't understand. You have everything, so why do you need to be so cruel?"

Victoria returns the gaze and sighs. She walks over to the couch taking a napkin out of her purse then hands it to Max before looking away.

"Lets stop talking about this. It bores me." Victoria says checking her nails. "Besides, we're here to talk about Nathan, remember?"

Max nods happy to let the issue go, though the hurt and angry feelings still remain. She mutters, "Right. We're in danger, I guess."

"No, _I'm_ in danger." Victoria corrects. " _You're_ safe seeing as you knocked him out from behind. Did you read all my texts? Nathan asked me about who hit him and I said it was a security guard."

She flushes realizing the truth of Victoria's words. "You're right. Thanks for not ratting me out." It feels strange to thank Victoria right after asking her about her cruelty. "But this is a good thing, isn't it? I can't do much about Nathan, but you're safe."

"And how's that?"

"You're too wealthy to be intimidated by the Prescott family. Plus, you're really well known and popular. If he tries anything, people will come to your defense or it'll get attention really quickly."

Victoria sniffs in distaste. "Nice optimism, Max, but that's not the case. To begin, my family is rich, but we really pale compare to the Prescotts. My family owns a well known art gallery – the Prescotts are real estate giants. They have tons more money than we do."

"And you can see it." Victoria continues. "Nathan drives better cars than I do, he has more things than I do, and his family is the primary supporter of Blackwell. I also met his very intense lawyers a few times before and did you know that kid has vacation houses? Not one, but two. Just for himself, not even his whole family."

Max gets the point. As many advantages as Victoria has, she really is nothing compare to Nathan. "But…but still, he can't just harm you in public and get away with it. You have people around you constantly. Getting you alone would be difficult."

She nods. "That is true, but you know…I don't think Nate will hurt me. We're friends. He acted weird and, yeah, he did wave that gun at me in the bathroom, but I don't think he would _shoot_ _me_. That's just not him."

"Look, I know Nate made himself look really bad, but I swear to you, he's not like that. Something happened. Something happened that really set him off."

Max swallows knowing exactly what that something is, though she also knows what Nathan did to cause it. Considering Victoria's feelings towards Chloe, it is almost a certainty who she would blame for this incident.

"We can't take that risk, Victoria. I know he's your friend and you trust him, but your safety is the priority here. We have to be cautious. We have to ensure you're not alone right now.

Victoria scoffs. "But there are times when I _am_ alone. What about when I'm in the bathroom? Do I always have to bring Taylor or Courtney with me? What about in my room? Slumber parties every night, Max?"

At a loss, Max didn't know how to respond. How could they deal with a lunatic like this? What _can_ they do? As far as she can see, the only course of action is to wait and see, which basically translate to waiting until he shoots Victoria or Chloe. Unacceptable.

Seeing the lost look on her face, Victoria sighs. She gets off the bed and walks past Max to stand in front of the mirror checking her appearance. Max tries to rack her mind to come up with a solution to the problem, but still without a clue, she turns to her only source of experience in dealing with potential murderers. Movies.

"You…you need a hiding place." Victoria scowls, but Max continues. "We both agree that you're generally safe in public, but it's when you're alone that's the problem. You're not really safe in the dorms at night when it's quiet, right? So you'll just have to stay somewhere other than the dorms meanwhile."

"Oh right, I should just commute between Blackwell and my house in Seattle. An eight hour drive every day? No problem."

"I didn't mean that. Your family is wealthy, right? Can't you just rent a hotel and stay there until this blows over?"

If possible, Victoria's face twists in disgust even more. "Ugh, the only 'hotel' – if that sloven place can even be called that – is the Blue Berry Inn in town. It's not worth the price, it's not worth the time to drive from there to Blackwell, and it sure as hell isn't worth the infections I'm likely to get staying there."

Max sighs in exasperation. "We're talking about your _life_ here, Victoria. Can't you be a little less picky?"

An icy silence ensues. She looks at the reflection of Victoria's face in the mirror and the other girl is ignoring Max in favor of continuing to adjust her hair. She takes a step back and leans over steeply looking carefully over how her clothes appear.

Frustration comes over Max. Couldn't Victoria take this more seriously? Her very life is at risk and she refuses to stay in a hotel because she thinks it's disgusting. Instead, she's more interested in keeping up a perfect appearance.

Which is a ridiculous ploy to ignore Max. Her appearance is immaculate. Her face has a light and well blended application of make-up, her various jewel accessories are classy and complements her looks rather than overwhelm it, her shirt is designed to be loose in areas and fit her snugly in other areas, and her denim shorts shows off her butt and legs well.

"God, Caulfield, don't you have any discretion _at all_?"

Max snaps her eyes up to see Victoria staring at her using the mirror. Victoria straightens up and turns around giving a knowing look to Max who can feel her face burning at being caught staring yet again.

She blubbers out an apology but Victoria didn't seem like she's listening. She walks over to where Max is and sits besides her sighing.

"When you have wandering eyes," Victoria begins in a lecturing tone. "make sure to glance up at the girl's face every now and then to check if she noticed. How do you not know this? Have you never been checked out by a guy before?"

A pause. Then Victoria grins cruelly. "Huh, bad question. Of course not."

"I w-wasn't checking you out, Victoria. I was just looking at your clothes…"

Victoria's mocking laughing rings out. Max couldn't help but agree. That almost sounded like a guy's excuse and there is no doubt it wouldn't fly even if, in her case, it really is true.

"My 'clothes' consist of more than just my ass, Max. This is the second time you've done it just today and, yesterday, I saw you staring at my tits."

"I was looking at your pearls!"

Max's desperate explanation is only met by a condescending smile. She wishes there was a hole she could crawl into to avoid this situation, but the only hole she knows of is her room…and they're both sitting right in it.

Not knowing how to convince Victoria, she opts for being honest.

"I swear I was really just looking at your clothes. I can't help that everything you wear always look so, just so damn good. And today, you're wearing-" Max gestures incredulously to her clothes. "clothes that's like…I don't know. I've never seen clothes like that before. They're just so good and makes you look really sexy. Oh, I, uh, mean sexy in a good way."

Victoria smiles amused. "I don't think there's a bad way to be sexy, Max." She pauses a moment. "Want to take a photo?"

Max's eyes widen. "I…I can? You'll let me?"

"Yes. Make it an up-close shot."

Eager, Max quickly gets her camera and moves next to the bed where Victoria is now lying on it in a sultry pose. As Max fiddles with her camera, the blonde suddenly grabs her and pulls her down onto the bed.

"What are you doing?" Max squeaks in surprise.

"I said an up-close shot, didn't I? You were too far." Victoria jokes. "Do what you do best. Take a selfie and make it a selfie of us both."

Max blinks then nods. Max holds up the camera as Victoria closes in and she snaps a photo. When it comes out, she shakes it a little and stares as it develops. A smile lights her face when the photo reveals both their faces.

Her face is, as usual, goofily grinning while Victoria's shows a pleasant smile. Max is a bit disappointed that she couldn't get all of the stylish clothes in the shot, but somehow, this feels better. She can find shots of women in fashionable clothes anywhere. She can find shots of Victoria Chase in fashionable clothes probably on her social network.

No one else can find a shot of Max and Victoria together anywhere except in this photo she holds in her hands.

Max gets off the bed and walks to her bag. Taking the other photos she shot, she walks over to her desk and takes out a binder. Inside are many pages of clear sleeves designed to hold photos. She places each photo in an empty sleeve with the new Victoria and her photo being the last one in. Afterwards, she sighs happily.

"Hipster." A voice mutters in the background.

Max turns around. Filled with renewed enthusiasm, she begins, "Lets get back to the Nathan problem."

"Do you have a new idea?"

She did not. The only idea she _could_ have came up with is for Victoria to stay at her house or a hotel, but her house is too far away and a hotel is supposedly too icky for the Chase Princess. Where else, though?

An idea comes to Max. "How about you stay in my room?"

In the short time she thought of it, it had sounded like a good idea to Max. When she voiced it, though, Victoria lets out a short snicker that completely saps all confidence from her.

"You sure move fast, don't you, Max?" Victoria says in a sultry voice making Max's face feel heated. "Not even dinner and a movie. Just straight to your room."

"That's not what I mean!"

"Alongside wandering eyes, I guess I should expect wandering hands when we're sleeping in bed together?" Victoria smirks down at Max. "My, it appears I traded a murderer for a molester. Woe is me."

"You can sleep in my bed while I sleep on the couch." Max exclaims and almost immediately starts regretting it. "I promise I won't do anything while you're staying over."

If Victoria is grateful, she did not show it. "A whole bed to myself? Well, I suppose I can deign to patronize your establishment, after all."

She lets out a dramatic sigh and lies down on her stomach on the side of the bed behind Max. Placing Max's pillow underneath her head, Victoria takes out her phone and begins texting her friends. Max takes this to mean that she isn't interested in conversation anymore.

Thankfully, it seems their bases are covered for now anyway. Max takes out her phone. She has to contact Kate and get with her to see when they could meet for tea. Now might be the best time to reach out to her seeing as Kate's own free period is coming up.

_Max: Hey Kate, are we still up for tea?_

She feels the bed shifting, but ignores it assuming Victoria is just making herself comfortable. A few minutes later, Kate responds back.

_Kate: Yeah were still up for tea. My class just ended 20 mins ago and I dont have anymore for a few hours. Want to meet me at the dorms in 20?_

_Max: I'm here already. I'll be waiting for you._

_Kate: Alright. Thanks Max. xoxo_

As she reads Kate's last text, a scent comes to her nostrils vaguely reminding her of flowers. She senses some sort of presence to her right and, when she turns, freezes upon seeing Victoria. She is leaning her head over Max's shoulders looking down at her phone.

"A tea party, Max? Aren't we a bit old to still be having those?"

"It's, uh, ahem." Max needed a moment to collect herself. "Kate enjoys tea and, uh, I drink it with her when we…when we're together- chatting, I mean."

Victoria shifts her eyes to glance at Max whose face looks like a bright red tomato. Smirking slight and worsening Max's blush in the process, Victoria leans back onto the pillow raising her knees to get comfortable.

"You're also very rude. You invite me over, demanded that I start living with you, and now you're going to run off and drink tea? Without even inviting me? I guess I should just die of boredom then."

Max figures that reminding Victoria that _she_ was the one who asked to talk would be as productive as asking the birds to do barrel rolls in the air so she can photograph them.

"You…you want to come along?"

"I don't know. Seems kind of pathetic and beneath me."

There is a pause in which a light seem to go off in Max's head. In Victoria's presence, she finds her most common state of mind is flustered and confused, but for the first time, she thinks she knows exactly how to work with her.

"Oh, uh, I mean, would you please come with me to Kate's? I bet you can make things more fun."

Victoria closes her eyes and hums with pleasure. "Well, you are a bit of a downer. I suppose I can come along and help teach you how to make things interesting."

"Thank you, Victoria. There's just one thing, though."

As much as the blonde is growing on her, she is not so insane as to think inviting Victoria Chase over to Kate Marsh's room is a good idea. There is something Max needs to get off her chest and it's for Kate's sake as much as her own.

"Please do not bully Kate."

A pause. Then Victoria's face becomes annoyed. Lying on the bed, Victoria glares at Max as her lips tighten ready to unleash her wrath.

"Give me more credit than that, Caulfield. I know how to behave as a guest."

Max hesitates, but steels herself. "I don't just mean during our visit, Victoria. I mean stop permanently." Victoria's cold silence is her only response. "It's not fair the way you treat her. She's my friend and, if you really try, she can be your friend too."

"And why would I want Mrs. Christ as my friend?"

"Her name is Kate Marsh, not Mrs. Christ." Max corrects. "There's a bunch of reasons why. First off, it's always nice to have more friends. Second, you want her as your friend because you need all the help you can get right now with Nathan on your ass. Third, uh…Kate has a lot of tea flavor and she'll let you try them."

Max flounder at the end there, but is convinced she generally has a strong point. Victoria, however, does not look impressed and her glare intensifies.

" _First_ ," Victoria begins acidly. "in case you haven't noticed, I have more fucking friends than I do shoes. Second, she is about as useful in a fight as she is in life – not at all. Third," A mysterious spiteful smile comes onto Victoria's face. "I'm not much of a tea drinker. Perhaps if we all share some hard liquor instead? Say brandy and soda?"

"Kate is not a drinker."

Victoria smirks. "Her actions at the Vortex party on Friday say otherwise, doesn't it?"

Max found herself very frustrated with Victoria. Aside from calling Kate useless, there is something vaguely ominous about the way she said that last comment. At Max's confused look, Victoria's smirk slowly falls away into one of slight surprise.

"You don't know what I'm talking about, do you?" Max's blank stare continues. "Haven't you noticed the link posted around Blackwell?"

"I've never really paid attention to that kind of thing…what is going on, Victoria?"

Max's sense of unease grows rapidly. At her question, Victoria seems to become uncomfortable. Her facial expression becomes apathetic but there is tenseness in her body language and her eyes shift elsewhere. Knowing Victoria's awe-inspiring ego, the fact that this subject makes her uncomfortable only serve to increase Max's unease.

"Victoria, what did you do?"

A sneer. "Why did you automatically assume I did something?"

"Did you?"

" _No_. All I did was record a video. Everything else was Kate's fault."

"Video?"

Heaving a deep sigh, Victoria says in a monotone voice, "Go to on your phone."

With great dread, Max does as instructed. The website is some kind of simple template blog and the only thing posted is an embedded video about a Vortex Club party. Part of the headline exclaims 'Kate's gone wild!' and a thumbnail shows Kate leaning into a random boy.

Max follows the video to its main website. The comment section is filled with Blackwell students making mocking comments. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she presses 'Play' on the video.

Loud electronic music combined with yelling assault her ears. She can barely just make out the voice as that of Victoria's alongside someone she couldn't make out. The video is an amateur 'shaky cam' type and there is a blaring of rainbow flashing lights that one gets to know at gaudy parties.

Through it, Max sees the camera focus on an individual that remains blurry yet the clothing and hairstyle makes the person obvious: Kate Marsh. Kate is shown making out with a wide variety of boys.

Max's mouth drops in horror, but she couldn't look away. Kate remains in place swaying back and forth, but an endless stream of boys moves over to her. Some gives her a chaste kiss on the lips while others goes so far as to lick her face and grope her while making signs to their friends. Everyone is laughing and pointing.

At one point, Kate looks directly into the camera and Victoria zooms in on her face. Her eyes were glazed over and she seemed more confused than enjoying herself. The camera zooms back again to record another kiss. Finally, after it already went on far too long, the video ends but there was no indication that what she saw even finished.

Max lowers her phone onto her lap and she stares blankly at the wall. She didn't know how to respond to what she just saw. It seem like Kate was doing everything willingly, but this isn't her friend at all. Kate is the girl who's created an abstinence campaign and who never even had a boyfriend. Max is supposed to believe she was doing all that at a Vortex party?

But videos don't lie. She must talk to Kate as soon as possible. She will get to that when she can, but for now, she must address something else.

"Why did you record and upload this, Victoria?"

Victoria hesitates slightly, "Because it was funny. I don't like hypocrites, especially self-righteous ones. I decided to put up the video to knock Kate down a peg."

She expected Max to respond with more chastisement, but didn't hear anything. She looks over to see the other girl giving her a deep look of disappointment. Victoria chafes and glares at her.

"What's with that look?"

Max places her phone back into her pocket, gets off the bed, and faces away from Victoria. "You can't come with me to Kate's, Victoria. You...you're not right."

"Be more clear." Victoria gets off the bed glaring at Max's back. "What do you mean I'm 'not right'?"

"Yesterday, after what happened, you brought me to your room, you told me everything was alright, and you showed a lot of concern. It was unreal to me because you're never this nice. Now, today, you're suddenly mean to me again and, a moment ago, you were talking about this…this _horrible_ video mockingly. As if you don't care at all."

Swallowing, Max continues, "You're just such a bully at times. I won't let Nathan harm you if I can help it, Victoria, but I don't think we can ever be friends. You're a terrible person, though I know you don't have to be. You're just not right."

Burning anger flashes through the eyes of Victoria and her breathing becomes heavier. She walks up and grabs Max's shoulders turning her so they face each other. The sudden grab startles Max, though, and she tries to move away. Victoria pushes against the movement and slams Max against the wall. There, she holds her by the shoulders as she glares hatefully.

The upset look Max had on her face loosens to reveal fear and she cowers which only makes Victoria leans in more. The two were so close that Max could smell the cherry mint on her breath and feel the breeze of her breathing.

The only thing keeping Max from wilting is the feeling of outrage and pride. She feels righteous in saying what she did and that feeling allows her to steel herself for whatever Victoria plans to do.

Except nothing happens. Victoria remains glaring into Max's face with fury as the clutch on her shoulders begin to ache and sore. Her intense eyes linger on Max's and she did not know if it's intentional but the intensity and proximity of her eyes slowly strip away her courage.

"Victoria, back off. Let me go." Max says firmly.

The demand is ignored without any hint that it was heard at all. After a moment of silence, however, Victoria breaks her silence.

"You had no right to say those things to me." Victoria hisses. "Who the fuck do you think you are? What, are you some purebred, hot shit who never does anything wrong?"

"I am Kate's friend, Victoria. I said what I said because you have been and continue to bully her and it's not right. This is just the latest of it. Don't you realize what kind of effect this will have on her?"

When Victoria says nothing, she continues. "You probably think only a few people here will laugh at her, but did you looked at the list of comments on that video you uploaded? There are dozens of comments, Victoria. Half of Blackwell might have been laughing at her."

"And what about her personal life? What kind of background do you think someone like Kate comes from? If her parents get wind of this, what's going to happen? Every part of her life is going to be worse off."

Despite telling Victoria about it, Max realizes she had not thought very much of it herself. What she says is true – Kate's personal life is likely to be badly affected if her family or church sees this video. There might come a time when Kate feels alone in the world and the few friends she has might not be enough to make a difference. Max might not be able to make a difference.

The thought causes her to choke up. "Why do you hate us, Victoria? What did we do to you?"

"Shut up, Caulfield!" Victoria shouts. Their proximity allows spittle to peck Max's face. "It's always the fucking same with you. 'Why, Victoria?', 'You are a bully, Victoria!', 'Kate is _so_ helpless, Victoria!'. Yeah, well, you know what? Maybe it's time for her to toughen the fuck up."

Max remains silent staring at Victoria.

"Are you going to always be there to protect the little angel? What is she going to do when she's out there in the real world and nobody gives a shit about her feelings? She'll have to fight everybody else tooth and nail to get what she wants. Max Caulfield can't fight for her and she sure as hell won't be able to fight for herself then if she can't even handle the consequences of her own action now."

"That isn't Kate in the video! That isn't her actions! You just don't know her like-"

"She got _drunk_ , Max. Nobody held a gun to her head and nobody forced themselves onto her, you idiot!"

"Was she also the one who recorded and uploaded the video? Whose action is that?"

" _Right_ , we should all just be banned from recording in public because Kate fucking Marsh might do something stupid and she doesn't want anyone to remember it. Big surprise she might want that if she can't even handle her drink. Maybe she should just kill herself and save the trouble."

Max pales at the words. She swallows trying to remove a sudden clog in her throat. "Apologize for saying she should kill herself, Victoria. Say you're sorry."

Victoria glares at her for a moment, then her mouth turns upwards into a smirk. "I'll tell you what, Max. I will apologize. Not just for the 'bullying', as you call it, but for saying she should kill herself too. _But_ if I'm going to say it, I want Kate to ask me to apologize. Or is that too fucking much?"

Shaking her head before Victoria even finished, Max decides that this is a lost cause. The last thing she's going to do is bring Victoria to Kate's room. If that's what it would take to get an apology, then an apology is not worth it.

"Forget it. You're not coming with me to see Kate. Stay here or go wherever you want to, Victoria. I need air."

She averts her eyes from Victoria's and tries to leave, but the latter refuses to budge or remove her grip from Max's shoulders. Max looks back into Victoria's fierce eyes and a worry seeps into her as to what's happening.

"Aren't you supposed to fix everything for little Kate?" Victoria says sharply. "How will you stop my bullying if you don't allow us to patch things up?"

"You don't want to patch things up, Victoria. You're just trying to stir shit up." Max tries to leave again, but Victoria still refuses to move. "Stop it!"

The sound of vibration stops the two of them. Victoria quickly reaches into Max's pockets to take out her phone before she has a chance to stop her. Staring into the phone screen, Victoria's angry features lighten and a pleasant smile comes onto her face, though Max didn't believe the sincerity in it. She returns the phone into Max's pockets still smiling.

"Kate just texted you saying sorry for being a late, but she's in her room now."

She suddenly releases Max who has to quickly right herself before falling over. Victoria gets another napkin and returns to wipe away at Max's face. Frozen and confused, Max lets her. When Victoria finishes, she throws the napkin into Max's trash can, then picks her purse off the couch.

"Well, it looks like we have a tea party to attend, don't we? Lets go."

This snaps Max out of her daze. "Wait, I said you can't go!"

Victoria ignores her leaving through the door. Max quickly runs after her. Outside, the halls are now buzzing with small bits of activity. A few students notice Victoria coming out of the room and Max following after her.

Max tries to physically restrain Victoria with the latter just plainly brushing the efforts off. Unable to do more, Max runs ahead to block Kate's room stretching her arms outwards. By this point, the other students see the commotion and looks curiously at the two. Victoria notices the attention and glares at Max.

"Move, Caulfield."

"Please, Victoria, don't do this! Lets just go back to my room, okay? The both of us. I will-"

The door opens behind Max and she nearly falls backwards but the person behind holds her up. Max turns around and, as she feared, it is Kate. Her friend looks into Max's eyes concernedly before she looks at Victoria and her eyes widen in fear.

"Hey, Katie. Max and I received your message so we've come to attend the party. May we come in?"

" _No_. We're not coming in. Plans changed, Kate." Max says rapidly trying to salvage the situation. "We're just going to-"

"Don't be rude, Max. Kate invited us and we are free, so we must attend."

Victoria brushes past Max and Kate just barely dodges out of the way as she barges in. Max swallows a nervous gulp believing this will end disastrously and that it is her fault.

She slouches in closing the door behind her and stays by Kate's side. Reaching out, Max clasps hands with Kate and gives the girl an apologetic look. Kate returns a curious stare as if to ask how this all came about.

None of this is noticed by Victoria as her attention is on taking stock of the room. The first thing that is brought to her notice is the fragrance smell. Kate's room smells strongly of some kind of cheap store bought fragrance.

Glancing to her right, she takes note of a pair of a multi-level desk where Kate store food, a mini couch, and a footrest with a violin case and tablet on top. To her left is Kate's bed, drawers with her pet rabbit on top, and few other accessories; the bed is unmade and the rabbit cage is a mess. Ahead of her are several cabinets, a computer desk with a laptop and backpack sitting on top, and a desk to the right with numerous books and binders.

Victoria wrinkles her nose at the desk in particular. Not only is there a pile of unwashed clothes lying carelessly at the bottom, but sitting on the desk is the largest bible she has ever seen. It has various sticky notes peeking out too suggesting that Kate actually read it.

Giving it more thought, Victoria gives the room a second look over and notices a large Jesus portrait near the rabbit and an abstinence poster on the side of the book desk.

Turning around, she notes how Kate and Max are still silently staring at her wide eyed. As if, at any moment, Victoria is going to lose her shit and start tearing the whole place apart.

"Kate, you're not a very good host." Victoria chides with a pleasant smile. "Shouldn't you offer your guests tea?"

The two friends look at each other in silent communication and Max nods. Kate starts up her electric tea kettle and rummages below.

"Lemon zest, Max?" Kate asks already holding onto a teabag.

"Yes, please."

"Um, what would you like, Victoria?"

She is distinctly annoyed to see that Kate only asked with her back turned to her. Apparently, not being Max, she isn't good enough to talk face to face.

"Give me the same as Max."

Victoria sits on the couch to wait for Kate to finish. She glances at Max to find the girl smiling down at Kate as she prepares the tea.

"Max." She calls patting the spot beside her. "Have a seat. You don't want to throw away your host's kindness, do you?"

She hesitates glancing down at Kate. A second later, though, she takes a seat…at the other end of the couch away from Victoria. The latter scowls but ignores it figuring something like this might happen when she decided to crash their little party.

Max's face looks apprehensiveness. It would be a lot easier to tell if she could see Max's face more clearly. Victoria blinks at that thought seeming to realize for the first time that Kate's room is, in fact, pretty dark. She looks to the windows and notice the curtains are all drawn. She also catch that the mirror near the door appears to be blocked using a towel. She cringes at this display of low self-esteem.

Kate sets down two cups with a teabag in them in front of Victoria and Max. A few minutes later, the kettle beeps and Kate picks it up pouring into both of their cups. Then she pours her own cup and sits on the couch. Right beside Max leaving a large gap between the two and her.

A chord of annoyance goes through Victoria at this, but she calms herself. In a few minutes, there's a good chance she's going to bring the party down anyway.

"So Kate," Victoria begins sweetly. "what's on the agenda today? Was there any reason you called us over?"

Max bites her tongue in annoyance. Kate hadn't called 'them' over, she had called _Max_ over and she somehow stupidly got Victoria involved. As she had thought, when Victoria brought it up, Kate immediately glances at Max before quickly looking away. After this meeting, they might have to setup another one to really talk.

"Nothing, really, Victoria. I just wanted to have tea with someone."

"Ah, I see. Well, I have a topic I'm sure we'll all have fun talking about. See, Max has been complaining to me about something."

"I have an idea!" Max quickly cuts in her eyes showing great fear. "How about we talk about some upcoming movies we want to watch? We can even watch one-"

"Now, Max," Victoria sharply interrupts glaring at her. "I believe I was talking. As I was saying, Max has been complaining about something." Seeing Max about to interrupt again, she quickly adds, "Well, complaining when she wasn't staring at my chest or butt anyway."

That shuts Max up and her face reddens drastically. Kate snaps her head to look at Max with wide eyes. Victoria smirks knowingly and continues talking.

"See, Max thinks I'm a bully. She called me 'cruel', a 'terrible person', and I believe she says that I'm 'not right'. Did I get everything, Max?"

With each phrase, Max and Kate flinches. The air grows noticeably heavier and the tea now sits forgotten. Kate's eyes are downcast and her body trembles visibly as if she's slowly becoming aware of what is about to happen.

From the start, she had been wondering what had happened to bring this about. She heard yelling outside her door, opened her door to find Max and Victoria out front, and the latter barged in seeming to say she's coming to attend the tea meeting she had originally planned for her and Max only. She had wanted to talk to Max about something that's been hurting her greatly.

Now, though, it seems everything is about to fall apart for her _yet again_ and there's nothing she can do about it.

"There's one more thing." Victoria says breaking the thick silence. "Max here says she wants me to apologize for everything I've done. I agreed to." At this, Kate looks up in surprise. " _But_ under the condition that you tell me why I should."

Max stares. That is not the original condition Victoria set. The latter ignores her in favor of giving a hard look to Kate.

Kate wilts. The atmosphere and Victoria's intense aggressiveness is too much. "I don't want an apology, Victoria. I just wanted tea and to talk. Can you…can you please go?"

"Why should I?" Victoria bites back. "What did I do? Is that any way to treat your guest?"

"But I only invited Max…"

"Well, I'm still a friend. If you invited one friend, you should invite the others."

She didn't respond to Victoria's claims. There is an unanswered silence in the air with everyone in the room knowing that Kate is not Victoria's friend. Max, feeling guilt and remorse course through her, grabs onto Kate's hand and gives it a warm squeeze. Kate responds returning the grip with both her hands trying to get comfort.

Kate had no intention of responding, but Victoria isn't about to let it go. "Why so quiet, Kate? We _are_ friends, aren't we?" More silence. "Answer me, Kate."

"No, we aren't friends." Kate whispers. Her eyes are starting to tear up. She just wanted Victoria to leave. "Max is my friend."

"And why's that? What did I do?"

Kate looks at her fearfully. Why is Victoria doing this? She knows what she did to Kate. All the mocking, the abuse, throwing things at her in class, and then, worst of all, there's the video…

"Tell me, Kate."

"Stop it, Victoria!" Max couldn't take it anymore. "That's enough! You're doing it again! You're bullying her!"

Victoria gives a long suffering sigh. "For fuck's sake, here we go again. I offered to give this girl an apology and all I wanted in return was for her to demand it herself. She becomes a little mouse, though, and big sister Max decides to defend her again."

She glares at Kate who cowers back. "What the hell is wrong with you, Marsh? Why can't you stand up for yourself?"

"Kate _has_ defended herself. Many times." Max insists. "I'm only here now as backup. Haven't you worn out your welcome?"

"Except you both made it clear from the start I was never welcomed to begin with." Victoria says dismissively. "All I'm really trying to do is build up little Kate's courage. I told you before – she can't depend on you forever. By doing this, she'll be toughened up. I actually view myself as something of a sibling to her."

"You're out of your damn mind! We're leaving now!"

"Didn't you say you wanted me to apologize, Max? How about I make it _real_ easy now? Kate, if you want me to apologize, just call me a bully and tell me to. I'll do it."

Max clenches her teeth. She wanted to hit Victoria badly, but knows better than to. However, it seems some measure of physical force is needed. Max gets off the couch and walks over to Victoria's side reaching out for her sleeve, but a furious look overcome Victoria's face stopping her in her tracks.

"I hope you're not intending to do that, Max."

There is a pause in which Max comes to a decision. "You know what? I do. We're leaving and I will force you if I have to."

Victoria gets up slowly. "I have several inches on you and actually have some meat on me. You really want to go down that path?"

A hint of fear goes through Max but it is drown out by adrenaline. There is something to be said for feeling righteous. It gives you a sort of courage you might otherwise never have. In most cases, Max might have turned the other cheek, but here, she wanted to escalate. Victoria deserves this.

Both of them are silently glaring at each other as if waiting for the other to make the first move. In this tense situation, Kate's voice appears.

"Why?"

Victoria and Max looks at Kate.

"Why do you do it, Victoria?"

"What are you referring to in particular?" Victoria asks smirking.

Kate purses her lips. Victoria, of course, knows fully well what she's referring to, but she wanted to hear Kate say it. She falls back onto the couch relaxed again, though Max is still standing before her glaring. Kate gets up and walks to Max taking hold of her hand.

"Max, sit down. I'll do it."

Her friend hesitates. "But…Kate…"

"Please."

Max relents. Willingly led by Kate, she comes to sit down at the other end of the couch from Victoria again. Kate sits down, to both their surprise, directly in the middle instead of beside Max.

Taking a deep breath, Kate turns to Victoria, "I'm referring to this…this blatant attempt to antagonize and harass me. I'm also referring to the mocking, the harassment in class, the calling me out in front of everyone, throwing things at me, blocking me from leaving when I try to, shoving me into walls, prank calling me at night, leaving open bags of garbage inside my room-"

Kate went on and on her voice cracking at times and becoming more emotional. Victoria sits listening with an unmoving face while Max cringes and flinches often. The latter had not even known the full extent of what was going on and many of the things said surprised her by the extent of pettiness and cruelty.

At last, Kate pause to breathe and her chest heave. Swallowing, she continues, "Worse of all…worse of all is that…video."

She is glancing at Max with a worrying look as she says that last part. The video is what she had wanted to discuss with Max and, once again, Victoria ruins things for her. Now Max might find out about the video in the worst way possible.

Kate thought this not realizing that she is already fully aware of the video.

"You do this, Victoria, and I have no idea why. The only things you said that even comes close to an explanation is that you called me self-righteous and you hate my abstinence posters. Is that it? Is that really it? I practice and preach abstinence, so you decide to make my life hell?"

"I don't want an apology, Victoria. I don't think you can give me one good enough to make anything alright." Kate says her eyes seem to be lost in a haze. "I just want to understand. I want an explanation. So please…why?"

The room descends into a deep silence. If Kate's words had any effect on Victoria, it is not shown on her face.

"Finished?" Victoria asks emotionlessly.

Kate looks at her mournfully before closing her eyes as if ready to accept whatever outcome appears. "Yes, I'm finished."

"Good. I'm glad you don't really want an apology because I lied. I have no intention of apologizing."

Max clenches her teeth trying to stifle the overflowing anger she feels. A feeling of helplessness also overcomes her and, for a moment, she wishes Chloe is there with her, though she is not sure what she could do. She just wanted another friend to be there with her.

Kate's eyes lose a bit of light at Victoria's words. She turns away to stare meaninglessly at the wall as if she could find what she wanted there instead. She whispers a prayer to herself hoping it can give her strength where she has none.

"I won't apologize." Victoria repeats. "But I will give an explanation. Those things about self-righteousness and abstinence? I don't really give a shit about that. I just say those things because I hate you but they're not the reason I hate you." Here, she snorts. "Why would I care if some random girl wants to die a virgin or follow the 2000-year-old laws of an invisible old man in the sky?"

"What I _really_ hate was simply you." Victoria says glaring at Kate making her cower backwards. "I hate how you look like you're about to cry 24 hours a day and I hate how, every time you talk, it sounds like you've been crying."

Victoria gets off the couch and paces rapidly in front of the two. "I hate the tacky Jesus jewelry you have on. I hate the clothes that looks like something my fucking grandmother would wear. I hate the fact that you're helping Mark Jefferson. I hate how you have this…this…this fucking ridiculous cloud of melancholy around you all the fucking time. Getting within 10 feet of you depresses the fuck out of me and it pisses me off!"

"Oh, and about that video?" She stops pacing and stops in front Kate staring into her eyes. "I hate how fucking hypocritical you are. How the fuck do you dare to preach abstinence to the rest of us and then you fucking tongue lock with half the school?"

Shame comes over Kate's face. "I…it's…that wasn't really me, Victoria."

"Are there many girls that look like you?" Victoria snaps. "Of course it was fucking you!"

"I mean-" Kate struggles with her words. "I mean that that's not who I _really_ am. I don't know what came over me, but it just wasn't me that did all of that. I'm not like that."

Victoria sighs in disbelief. "You don't know what came over you? Alright, I'll explain. You drank beer and you got fucking shitfaced. That's what came over you."

"No!" Kate says immediately. "I drank a single cup of juice, realized it was spiked, and stopped! I drink wine at my church all the time, but I don't get like that." She shakes her head desperately. "I didn't even _remember_ I did any of it. I had to watch the video to even fully realize what I did."

"The reason is that you drank stronger stuff than you're used to. Sacramental wine is, what, 10% ABV? Maybe 12%? We were pouring fucking hard liquor at that party, Kate. Strong cognac was served straight from the bottle and we were mixing vodka into the juice. Some people brought grain alcohol and I know at least one idiot went around trying to trick people into drinking it."

" _That's_ why you got so drunk, Kate. It wasn't magic – it was just getting in way over your head. Why don't you just admit it? You think the 'you' right now is what's real? Get with it already. This is a mask. The real 'you' is what you saw when drinking took that mask off."

There is a tense pause, then Kate's eyes well up with tears. Her form crumbles into itself.

"It's _true_. You're right." She says tears running down her face. "I didn't want to believe it, but you're right. I'm really a horrible, diseased person on the inside and t-this thing-" She says gesturing to herself. "is the real lie. I'm a whore. I don't deserve to live."

"No!" Max shouts. "Don't say that!"

She wraps her arms around Kate holding her against herself but the girl was inconsolable. She blubbers and sobs incessantly even as Max tries to explain insistently that there's more to her than just the video.

Victoria stares at the two of them and bites her lips averting her eyes. She silently walks over to the windows and opens the blinds to let in light. Walking to the mirror next, she removes the towel Kate put on, then stares at her own reflection emotionlessly.

"If…" Kate cries into Max's chest. "If only I can remember what happened! But I can't remember anything, Max. I can't remember the kissing I did, I can't remember the hospital, I can't remember how I ended up on a bench, I can't remember what happened to Nathan, I can't remember anything!"

Max freezes at the mention of Nathan and Victoria's attention is turned back to the two. Lifting Kate from her chest, Max wipes at the young girl's eyes and tries to calm her again.

"Kate, breathe. Please, for me." She waits a moment while Kate does as she asked. "Now what did you say about Nathan? What are you talking about?"

"Nathan, he's the one who took me to a hospital. Sometime during it, though, he disappeared. I don't know if he's the one who put me on a bench or if I walked there myself and just forgot. I saw him walking around the hallways but I'm too scared to ask him."

"I don't understand." Max says. "Nathan decided to take you to the hospital, something or another happened, and you ended up at a bench? Ridiculous. He must have put you there. But why? What happened at this hospital? Did you really go to a hospital at all? Do you remember that?"

"No, I…I don't. I just remember hearing a soft voice that I thought was a doctor's. I just don't know, Max! Ever since I drank that damn juice at the party, it's like I was a different person!" Kate heaves a sob. "I actually felt good at first. The party seemed more fun, but later on, my head felt like it was in a thick haze. It was like I couldn't move right anymore – my limbs weren't working like they should. I was dizzy, nauseous, and I just didn't really want to move."

Max gets more and more upset as she listens. She comes to the slowly dawning possibility that something far worse than getting drunk and kissing may have happened to Kate. Girls don't lose their memories at a party, get taken somewhere they can't remember, then wake up on a bench for innocent reasons.

A sigh takes their attention. Victoria comes back and falls on the couch. She picks at her denim shorts as she says airily, "Maybe it really wasn't you at that party, after all."

Max looks at her warily. "What do you mean?"

"Those symptoms she said…I heard them before." Victoria's eyes take on a far away look. Her voice drops. "When Kate was describing what she felt, it was familiar. I heard this before from another girl. I would think it's just the liquor again, but there's so much familiar with all of this."

Swallowing, Victoria says the next part with hesitation, "There is also something else. The other girl also left the party we were in at the time with…Nate."

A chill goes over Max. "I knew it. _I knew it_. He did something. Goddamn him."

"But…what did he do?"

Kate asks that. Max looks back at her as the thoughts swirl in her head. A deep, more sickening feeling goes through her. Her words come back to her: Girls don't pass out and wake up on a bench for innocent reasons.

"It…it might be a coincidence." Victoria says. "Nate is…he just isn't a rapist."

Kate pales considerably at this word as if the possibility of something else only just occurring to her. Max quickly breaks in.

"Lets not jump to conclusions. We only know one thing for sure." She says quickly turning to Kate. "We know that it really wasn't you at that party. You were manipulated. _This_ , Kate, this-" Max places hands on her friend's face. "-is the real you."

A shaky smile lightens Kate's face. "Max…thank you."

Victoria looks at this scene with an unreadable face.

"Anytime, Kate. That's what friends are for. I'm as happy as you are."

And she meant that. It provides Max a great sense of relief to believe that there is a problem somewhere that can be solved rather than that her friend made a terrible mistake and must pay for it in blood.

"I just…" Max sighs. "I just wish there was a way we can get more info about this."

A cough gets their attention. They turn to see Victoria looking at them blankly. "I…might know a way to get more information."


	5. Chapter 05

Max and Kate wait patiently in the back of Victoria's car as she sits in the driver's seat. They're in Blackwell's parking lot and they've been in the same spot for nearly an hour staring at a red truck which is supposed to be Nathan's.

Kate stares quietly out the window, though her eyes don't seem to focus on anything. Max glances at her frowning slightly. She had argued against Kate coming along this ridiculous expedition, but she insisted as it involves her. She was willing to come along despite it meaning she'll have to be with Victoria the entire time.

As Max suspected, the result is a tense silence in which neither of the two blondes have looked or spoke to each other the entire time.

Victoria's idea had been a simple one. She had thought that the best way to find out what Nathan is up to is to tail him and see where he goes. Her car windows are tinted, so that is supposed to make spying easier, but it seemed useless to Max.

What if Nathan recognizes her car? And how is this supposed to help them find out what happened to Kate?

At the thought of her, Max glances over but she remains the same. Ever since the outburst in her room after Victoria broken her spirit, Kate had been very quiet giving Max a lot of cause for concern. She tried her hardest to lift Kate up. She tried to stick close, offered comforting words, but all seemed to have done nothing.

In frustration, she breaks the silence.

"This is stupid." Max complains. "We've been here an hour and Nathan hasn't shown up. Even if he did, who knows where he will go? It could be days before we find anything useful."

Victoria tightens her lips a bit, but concedes. "It might take a while. Not as long as you think, though. Nathan leaves Blackwell to really do only two things: Eat out and get drugs. He parties at Blackwell, does his shopping online, and all the people he knows are at school too."

Max scowls. She is grateful Victoria is actually Nathan's friend and knows him well as it makes this whole process easier, but it also makes her nervous that Victoria is friend to such a psychopath…and hadn't thought anything of it until he turned a gun on her.

Victoria continues. "So if he leaves, it will be either to a restaurant or to see Frank Bowers."

Max's eyebrows furrow in thought. "That name sound familiar."

"It does?" Victoria glances at her. "Frank is the only drug dealer in town. You've been getting high without me knowing?"

Grumbling, Max says, "That's not what I mean. It's just that I heard that name before. I think recently too. I- David! David Madsen said his name!"

"David Madsen?" The name catches Kate's attention. "The security guard?"

"Yeah. He's also Chloe's, my friend, stepfather. There…was a fight at that time and he brought up Frank calling him a dealer scumbag."

"Well, he's not wrong." Victoria says. "Frank gives me and my friends things we need, but I don't trust him any further than I can throw him."

Kate disagrees. "David is a jerk and he harasses me. I'm not sure if I would trust his judgment. What were you and him arguing about?"

Max cringes remembering the terrible scene. "It wasn't me he was arguing with, but Chloe. They got into an argument over a girl, Rachel Amber, and he was saying all these things about her. He called her a druggie, manipulative, and selfish. It was intense."

An angry scowls comes onto Victoria's face. Her voice becomes tinged with a deep anger. "Another thing he's not wrong about. Rachel is a bitch beyond words. She _is_ manipulative and selfish. She does do drugs; I know this because I've personally seen her do it. I can also guess why Frank got brought up – he was saying she banged Frank, right? That's true too. There isn't a bigger whore in the west coast than Rachel Amber."

Max blinks at the tirade steeped in bitterness. Listening to Victoria go on, she got the sense that the blonde knew Rachel personally. Not as in merely a classmate or even a fellow Vortex Club member, but _personally_.

"That's not fair." Kate protests softly. "You're saying all these things when she's not even around to defend herself."

"Yeah, well. Just because someone's here may not necessarily mean they'll defend themselves, does it?" Victoria says pointedly at Kate.

Kate opens her mouth, then closes it and turns away. Silence again falls onto the group. A few minutes later, Kate lays her head on her arms and, eventually, Max hears her breathing even out.

She smiles at the sight and an idea comes to her that this is the perfect time for a photo. Max roots through her bag for the camera, lifts it high, and snaps a photo of Kate dozing making sure to get herself in the shot too. Afterwards, she stares at the photo silently amazed that this is actually the first photo she has of her and Kate despite how often they're together.

She slides the photo and camera into her bag and lies back eventually dozing off besides Kate. It is the sound of Victoria harsh whispering and the feeling of being shaken that pulls her from her dreams. Blinking the sleep away from her eyes, she lifts her head up. As her vision clears, she sees Victoria mouthing something.

"…p…tha…now!"

"Wha…what?"

She tries to get her bearings together as Vctoria turns away staring ahead intensely. Moments later, Max feels the car moving and the realization of what is happening snaps her up. She looks out the windshield to see that they're following the red truck that they've been watching.

"Kate, Kate, wake up."

A sudden loud honking instantly wakes up Kate and makes the both of them jump. Max leans forward between the driver and passenger seat to get a better view.

"What happened? Why did you honk?"

"That wasn't me." Victoria says keeping her eyes forward. "Nathan installed a loud horn in his car. He said it makes the bozos move out of his way."

As they continue following Nathan, it becomes apparent that a screeching car horn is not the only thing Nathan has going for him. He is also legitimately one of the worst drivers Max has ever seen. He swerves endlessly as if drunk which, for all she knows, he may very well be. He seems to view stop signs and speed limits as suggestions rather than law.

Victoria had to employ some rather creative driving to avoid driving as reckless and let Nathan know they were following him. At red lights, she stopped and circles around to get up behind him again. When possible, she drove two cars behind him. When not, she keeps a distance and parks the few times he does stop.

Eventually, they go outside the residential area and drive along the road heading towards one of the beach areas in Arcadia Bay. When Nathan makes a turn onto a small beach, Victoria lets out an exasperated sigh, stops the car, and backs up right in-between a set of tree and parks.

"What?" Max asks. "What are you doing?"

"Nathan is going to see Frank." Victoria mutters. "This area is where Frank stays. I've been suspecting it when we left the city and here it is. Watch. As soon as he gets out, he'll turn back and head for Arcadia again."

Fifteen minutes later, Nathan's truck comes out and heads back to Arcadia passing them. Victoria lets out a tired sigh as Max leans forward between the seats to look at her.

"Damn. This is an ordinary thing for Nate. Unless he'll let us see what he bought, we didn't get much out of this. We might have to do it a few more times."

"Is there another way?" Max asks cringing at the idea of doing this several times.

"Give me some ideas. I'm out of my own right now."

Max bites her lower lip. "Say, you know Frank, right? Would it…would it be possible to get information from Frank somehow?"

"What, you mean ask him if Nate has been drugging any girls?"

"Well, no, but maybe…I mean you said he is Arcadia's only drug dealer, right? If Nathan wanted a, uh, rape drug-" Max says the word glancing at Kate but the latter doesn't react. "wouldn't he have gotten it from this guy? Also, if Frank sells guns…"

Victoria gives a thoughtful look. "You're right about the drug. I don't think Frank sells guns, but still, it's possible. Alright, lets give it a try."

She exits the car and gives a gesture for them to come along. Max and Kate look at each other and follow suit. Outside, they trail as Victoria leads the way.

In the turn Nathan had gone into, there is a beat up RV with cardboard covering the windows. Max starts recognizing it as the RV she saw in the parking lot the day she met Chloe. Does the RV belong to this Frank? What was it doing on school property?

Victoria goes right up to the RV and knocks loudly. There is a shuffle and the door opens to reveal a heavily tattooed man. Beside him is a dog and both glares at Victoria who glares back.

"Oh, for fuck's sake, now you too? I just had to deal with your fucking friend."

"I'm not here for drugs."

"Well then, you came to the wrong fucking place."

Frank tries to shut the door only for it to come against Victoria's foot. He looks at the foot blocking his door and his glare hardens. He shoos his dog inside and comes outside making Victoria back up. Behind her, Max and Kate steps back too also intimidated.

He looks at Max and Kate derisively. "And who the fuck are these two? Is this the backup posse? Quality help sure has gone down."

Frank laughs mockingly at them. Max flinches while Kate takes another step back. Victoria remains in spot looking unimpressed with him.

"I want information." Victoria cuts to the heart of the matter. "It's about Nathan."

"Oh, really?" Frank laughs again. "She wants information from me about her boytoy. Well, _fuck you_ , girlie. Shove what you want up your ass because you ain't getting shit from me.

Victoria's lips presses together tightly in anger. Seeing that the blonde may not be able to hold it together, Max steps forward.

"Please. My friend here-" She pointed to Kate. "-may have been harmed by Nathan. Victoria and I were almost shot by him." Kate looks at Max in shock. "He is dangerous and unstable. We're just looking for information on where he may have gotten the gun or if he bought some sort of rape drug from you."

"Rape drug?" Frank repeats glancing at Kate who squirms underneath his gaze. "I don't sell guns, girl. I don't even own one myself. I also don't sell 'rape drugs' per se."

"Per se?" Victoria glares at him. "Is this where you try to convince yourself that you're a 'good' dealer who doesn't do that kind of shit? Bullshit. You must sell something that can be used to dose girls into a deep sleep."

"Hey, watch your fucking mouth, kid! I only sell things that-"

The sound of a car stops the argument. Everyone turns around and Max pales seeing a red truck pull up and she knows she isn't the only one losing their cool at seeing it. How many people in Arcadia Bay own a truck that look exactly like Nathan's?

"Speak of the devil." Frank says bored. "You girls intend to stick around?"

"Max. _Max_. Lets leave." Kate whispers harshly and tugs at her arm. "Please!"

"Where the hell would we go?" Victoria says not removing her gaze from the truck. "Behind us is ocean and sand. In front of us is Nathan. Unless you're both quick enough that we can run past his car without him being able to stop us."

Any talk of running past becomes futile when Nathan steps out of the car. He walks at a deliberate pace and stands some distance away taking stock of the three girls and Frank.

"Well, when I decided to come back to get more firebud, I didn't think I would run into you three. It must be my lucky day. Or maybe not."

He glares suspiciously at Max and Kate, but his eyes pause on Victoria. The latter steps forward expectantly.

Sighing, Nathan runs a hand through his hair. "God, Victoria, you're so damn stubborn. Why the fuck couldn't you just listen to me?"

"Because I care, obviously." Victoria snorts. "More importantly, why the hell did I have to go through all of this just to talk to you?"

"Like I keep telling you – this is none of your business and it's better for you to stay away for your own good. Now look at you. Standing here with Kate Marsh and…who the hell is this again? This is that selfie girl you told me about before, right? Max Caulfield?"

Max shivers slightly when her name left his lips. The fact that he seems to know her makes her extremely uncomfortable. Worse, he knows her from Victoria? How did Victoria describe her to him?

"What the hell is this for? For the last time, Victoria, just leave it alone. Give me a week or two and I'll be fine again. I have to deal with my issues myself."

"For God's sake, Nate, I've known you for over a year now. How much shit have I been through with you? Who lied for you when you got busted for that weed in your locker? Me. Who helped get you adderall when there was no chance in hell a doctor would prescribe it to you? And, in case you forgot, who _did not_ report you for waving a gun around in the bathroom?"

"Holy shit, what the fuck is wrong with you Blackwell kids?" Frank mutters audibly.

Victoria flushes slightly realizing she said things she shouldn't have. "The point is that I'm the one person you should be able to come to help with this. Just tell me what the hell is wrong and I can help you fix it."

A strange look comes over Nathan. "I don't think you can help me with this, Vic. I'm…in way too deep shit. Bad shit." He shakes off the look. "Walk away. There's still time. You're a sister to me, Vic, so please just do this."

" _Just-_ " Victoria persists. "-tell me what happened. I'll back off afterwards, I promise. Why were you trying to kill Price?"

"I wasn't trying to _kill_ her." Nathan says. "I figured if I scare her enough, she'd back off. You didn't see what she was doing before you came in. You'd have been on my side, if you did."

Here, Victoria let out a sigh and steps forward. Max whispers harshly to her, but she ignores it. "Then for fuck's sake, Nate, just tell me what she was doing. What could she have been doing that would warrant you trying to make her shit herself?"

He looks exasperatedly at her. "I can't."

"Yes, you can. Why? Because we can trust each other."

Max is genuinely surprised by what's happening. Victoria and Nathan seems very close and it may be a closer relationship than simply because they're both in the Vortex Club.

There is a pause before Victoria speaks again. There is a slight hesitancy in her speech. "Nate, since that time, I've been hearing other things too. I've heard that…you may have been doing some other things. Very ugly things."

"Nathan, did you drug Kate Marsh?"

His face registers wide eyed surprise, then it distorts into a frenzied anger – the same anger from the bathroom. Victoria recognized it and tenses.

"It was _her-_ " He points at Kate. "-who did it, wasn't it? I wouldn't have ever thought it, but it makes so much sense now!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Victoria demands.

Nathan takes steps towards Kate who yelps in terror. Max quickly moves in front of her stretching her arms out in protection, though she too trembles in fear. To both their surprise, Victoria then moves in front of both blocking Nathan's view.

"What the hell are you talking about?" She repeats her question. "What about Kate?"

His mouth thins angrily. Off to the side, Frank is standing with his hands in his pockets watching warily. He wants to remains away from the growing conflict even though it's happening right in his backyard.

"She's the one who did it, right? In the bathroom." Nathan says. "She was the one who hit me from behind."

Max, looking to protect her friend, tries to cut in. "Kate didn't do anything! It was-"

"-someone else." Victoria interrupts harshly. "I already told you it was a security guard, didn't I?"

"Bullshit!" Nathan shouts. "Why are you protecting her? I know you didn't report me and…and I owe you for that, Vic, but I don't understand why you're protecting her. This is Kate Marsh. You _hate_ her. You've been fucking with her forever now."

Victoria's eyes glaze momentarily as if lost in thought. "Yeah, I have, haven't I? And I'm…I'm…" Her eyes shut as she struggles to get her words out. "I'm sorry for that. Kate, I'm _so_ sorry."

Behind her, Max can feel Kate pause in what is likely as much surprise as her own. Did Victoria just apologize for the bullying? After all this time and in this situation, she finally apologized?

"You're…you're sorry?" Nathan asks in equal surprise. "Why? Why the fuck why?"

Looking as if in pain, she says, "I fucked with her, but I did it for the wrong reasons. I was taking my anger out on her for something else that I couldn't let go. I took my anger out on everyone. Kate, Max, Taylor, Courtney. Fuck, I'm surprised I didn't take it out on you too, Nate."

"All this because I was angry about Rachel. That fucking Rachel – it's always been about her. I was angry at her, but when I saw it was meaningless, I took it out on everyone else because I thought that would have meaning. It didn't, though. It didn't have meaning when I did all those things to Kate because she is not Rachel."

Here, she opens her eyes and look straight into that of Nathan's. "Because she did not deserve it."

She said that in a clear, firm tone as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. Kate's worst bully just said she did not deserved to be mistreated and she said it in such a way that it stops the conversation. A thousand questions popped into Max's mind and she actually forgets about Nathan as she wonders if this signifies some…'new era' in Blackwell or perhaps just a great change in Victoria.

Nathan lets out a violent curse and reaches into his pocket pulling out a handgun. Everyone tenses again.

"Fuck that noise!" Nathan shouts. "I don't know what Rachel has to do with all of this and I don't give a shit. All I know is that _she_ is the one who fucking hit me and she's not getting away from this. She's too much of a goody two shoes. She'll fuck me up. I…she's coming with me."

The up to then wary tension blows into full panic. Movement out of the side catches everyone's attention. Frank quickly runs in and knocks the gun out of Nathan's hand tackling him down. The two embroil in a struggle.

Kate's face streaks with tears as she whimpers pathetically. She hates her own helplessness and fear but, simultaneously, can't seem to do anything about it. Max turns to her wiping away at her cheeks.

"Kate." Max says firmly. "I want you to run, okay? Run and hide until I come shouting for you."

"C-come with me." She says.

"I'll try, but-"

"No, you _will_." Victoria breaks in. "The both of you run and hide now until _I_ come calling."

"No, Victoria. You should be the one to go with Kate. You're the one with the car and can drive off. I can try to hold off Nathan and-"

"We discussed this before, Max. I'm bigger than you. Besides that…" Victoria leaves off reaching into her purse. Max feels her heart skip a beat when she pulls out a metallic object. "…I have this, remember?"

Max pales having forgotten that Victoria took that gun from the bathroom. Had she been hiding it in her purse the entire time? Going to class with it? The mere sight of it sends her mind into a jumble and she's not sure how to respond.

"No. Don't touch that, Victoria."

Kate had been the one to say that surprising them both. She walks up to Victoria, reaches up to grip the handgun, and pulls it away. So surprised by this development, Victoria allows it to happen without a word. She seems to snap out of it afterwards and tries to snatch it back but Kate hides the gun behind her back.

"Give that back now." Victoria says harshly. "Or do you want me to get shot without any defense?"

"We have a defense." Kate replies. "It's your car. We – all three of us – should run now and drive off. _Please_."

This is the boldest Max had ever seen Kate act and all it took was for Victoria to pull a handgun out. Or…perhaps it was the apology that did it? Whatever the case, she now has the strength to speak boldly and she now wants Victoria to come with them rather than leave her to face Nathan alone. Max wonders if that means she had forgiven her.

"Fuck!"

The shout gets their attention. Nathan and Frank are still wrestling and struggling intensely, but the former seem to be getting the upper hand. Frank, meanwhile, has turned his focus to his pockets. He reaches in and pulls out a switchblade, but Nathan already saw it and is using one arm to hold Frank's arm back.

"Alright, Kate. You win." Victoria says. "They're turning to weapons now, so this is our cue to leave, ladies."

She leads the way as they all maneuver around the struggling two. Nathan sees this and increases his efforts, but Frank fights back. He is so focused on his switchblade that he left his head undefended, which Nathan uses to full effect by headbutting him on the nose making Frank reel and drop the switchblade.

Using the opportunity, Nathan kicks Frank away and grabs his handgun while getting off the ground. Frank's pained shout gets Max's attention and she glances back. She screams and ducks down when she sees Nathan aiming a gun in their direction.

Her screams gets Victoria's and Kate's attention. The latter shouts her name and, in panic, raises the handgun she took from Victoria. It is a hopeless gesture as Kate merely holds the gun up by the grip and didn't have her finger around the trigger or even the trigger guard. It was a blind panic move and Kate had been hoping to merely scare off Nathan.

Nathan doesn't notice this. He sees her aiming a gun at him and he panics aiming back at her. Victoria shouts at Kate to get out of the way. In that moment, Max knew with absolute certainty that he is going to open fire.

Without even thinking, she scurries back up and jumps in front of Kate wrapping her arms around the other girl. An instant later, the deafening sound of a gunshot rings throughout the area and Max feels her back explode in white hot pain. The force of the bullet knocks both her and Kate over.

Vaguely, Max hears Victoria screaming and Frank cursing. The sounds of struggling resume behind her and she presumes Frank is fighting Nathan again. She didn't see any of this, however. Instead, she is staring into Kate's frozen eyes.

There are specks of red all over Kate's face and more red is pooling around her chin and neck. She must been spilling blood all over her friend. Kate's trembling hands reaches up to touch Max's face, but she finds her head too heavy to hold up anymore and she lies down on top of Kate's chest.

As her vision blurs and darkens, Max can hear Kate call her name, but she couldn't dreg up the ability to say something in return. Instead, she prays and hopes that Kate can make it out with Victoria and the two can get her to a hospital in time.

When Max became conscious again, a few things seem out of place. For one, she isn't in the hospital. She actually appears to be…in a car? Kate is dozing beside her and Victoria appears to be staring out the window in boredom. Max looks around quickly trying to ascertain what had happened.

It comes quickly to her. This is the same thing that happened yesterday. She just had a vision. Knowing them as well as she does now, she also knows they're very accurate too. Meaning that if this goes on without any action on her part, she's eventually going to get shot.

Max breathes shakily taking control of her rapid heart. Not this time. She's not just going to lay back.

"Victoria…Victoria! Kate!"

The blonde turns around at Max's excited shouting curiously. Kate groggily wakes up staring around at the commotion.

"Guys, we can't follow Nathan."

Victoria lets out a tired sigh. "This again?"

"No, I mean we definitely can't follow him! He has a gun and he's going to try to shoot us!"

Kate reels at the claim while Victoria stares at Max as if she lost her mind.

"What the hell are you going on about, Caulfield? How do you know all this?"

"I…" Suddenly, the enormity of convincing the two of this seems to be upon her. "…I had a vision about all of it. Just now."

There is silence. Max's face burns as she sees Kate's face turning into a sympathetic look. Victoria, meanwhile, is staring with her lips turned downward in distaste.

"You had a nightmare, Max." Victoria says blandly. "Try to stay with us in reality, won't you?"

"It's not a nightmare." She insists. "It's a vision. Well, not exactly a vision, I think. It's more like I sort of go through it then come back. It's…hard to explain. All the same, everything I saw and felt will happen exactly again if we don't stop this."

"Max…" Kate whispers touching her arm. "Calm down. It's alright. It really was just a bad dream. We were sleeping."

"Kate, you _have_ to believe me. Nathan has a gun on him and, if we follow him, we'll – well, just me – will end up getting shot."

"And why the hell would he shoot you? He doesn't know you had hit him in the bathroom, remember?" Victoria asks derisively.

Kate looks up in surprise at this. "Hit him…in the bathroom? What? What are you two talking about?"

"It's long story." Victoria says dismissively.

"He wasn't aiming for me." Max breaks in. "He was aiming for Kate. He thought she was the one who hit him. He-"

"Why would he think that?"

"Because you asked him if he had drugged Kate."

"I _asked_ him? What, in this fantasy of yours, did we all just sit down and had a nice chat?"

"No!" Max says feeling frustration build up. "Look, I'll try to explain. What happened is that Nathan eventually comes out and we tail him. He ends up driving to Frank Bowers to buy drugs. After he left, we go in to try to grill Frank for info, but Nathan ends up coming back. There's an argument, he gets angry, and pulls a gun. Frank fights with him a bit, but when we try to run, hell just breaks loose. Things go wrong, he is about to shoot Kate, and I jumped in front of her."

Kate frowns in concern while Victoria snorts in response. Max is sure Victoria is skeptical, but she can't tell if Kate might be beginning to believe or if she's just surprised by the graphic description. She wouldn't be too down if it's the latter – after all, she doesn't sound convincing to herself either.

"How heroic, Max." Victoria says blandly. "You save the cute girl. Afterwards, you both kiss and get married, right?"

"I'm being serious, Victoria!" Max insists. "Please believe me! Wait, you can see for yourself because everything I said will happen! Just…just please don't follow him anymore once you know he's heading to Frank's, okay?"

Victoria is silent for a moment. "You know, even if everything you said happens, it's not specific enough. I can probably predict accurately what Nathan will do on any given day too. Going to Frank and buying drugs? That's a weekly thing for him. Sometimes, two or three times a week. The problem is that even if you are somehow Ms. Psychic right now, your story doesn't get specific until it's way too late. We won't know you're right until we all get a gun in our face."

A feeling of hopelessness goes through her when she realizes how right Victoria is. She thinks of telling the blonde how Nathan drives, but it isn't as if he even hides it. Chances are anyone who seen Nathan driving knows how he drives. It seems fruitless.

Max bites her lips trying to rack her mind on what to do when it occurs to her. She does have information to convince Victoria and it's so obvious that she forgot it in the bigger memories of the shooting and tailing.

"I know something else." Max begins more confidently. "You have a gun in your purse."

Kate snaps her head around to stare at Victoria hoping for her to tell Max she's wrong.

"Nice try, Caulfield, but you saw me take his gun already."

Max stifles a groan. She had actually forgotten about it entirely, but Victoria couldn't have possibly known that. Beside her, Kate sputters in surprise.

"W-wait, you _do_ have a gun on you? Victoria, why? Please. Lets give the gun to the police or Principle Wells."

" _No_ , Kate. Giving it to Wells will basically get me a one-way ticket to expulsion. The police can be persuaded that I found it, but really, I don't want to give it up. Beside, they'll track it down and…well…"

Max realizes what's holding her back. "You don't want to get Nathan in trouble. After all, you care about him."

The blonde gives Max a curious searching look, but nods in confirmation. Kate sits up in outrage at this.

"Are you serious? He drugged me, Victoria. How could you _care_ about such a person?"

"We don't know for a fact that he did yet, Kate." She bites back. "Beside, you don't think too highly of me either, now do you? Remember our talk in your room about me being a bully and how sorry I'm not about it?"

Kate averts her eyes trying to hold back her anger and tears. Max puts a hand on Kate's shoulder. Their conversation just now reminds her of something else that she can use.

"But…" Max says getting Victoria's attention. "…but you _are_ sorry about it. You said you hated Kate, but that's not the real reason. The real reason you bully Kate is the same reason you act the way you do towards everyone else. It's because of Rachel Amber."

Victoria's face registers surprise for a moment before contorting into vicious anger. "Why the fuck are you talking like you know me? Who the fuck are you to say that?"

"You were the one who told-"

"I've never told you _shit_ about that! Don't put words into my mouth!"

"Is it true, though? I'm right, aren't I?"

"You're the psychic. You had this vision. Shouldn't you fucking know?"

Max's eyes show the frustration she feels. "I don't know, Victoria! All of this was said in the heat of things and I didn't really learn that much! Please, though, you have to believe me!"

Victoria's face is nearly purple with rage. Max is surprised by the turnabout. The previously calm, if biting, demeanor changed into outright hostility. All because she brought up Rachel and got too personal about it.

It now seems like a foolish thing. When it comes this subject, Victoria is no doubt an extremely private person and trying to bring it to light without her consent was a bad idea. She had no choice, though. She must convince her and Kate of this somehow.

It failed, however. Victoria turns away and hisses at her. "We're going after Nathan. I'm not listening to this."

Internally, Max wails at her failure and she slumps back into the car seat not sure where to go now. Beside her, Kate looks at her friend and she reaches out putting her hand on top of Max's. When the latter looks at her, Kate smiles gently.

"I believe you, Max."

Max stares at her wide-eyed and her face lights up in happiness. Seeing this, Kate smiles for reassurance. Steeling herself, she turns to Victoria who is staring at her in disbelief.

"Victoria, I won't go with you. I'm leaving now."

"Are you fucking serious?" Victoria asks her voice rising. "You fucking buy that load of horseshit?"

"She was right about the gun. She was also right about this Rachel, it seems." Victoria narrows her eyes dangerously. "Beside, I know Max. She wouldn't be saying all of this for no reason. She's not like that. If she says that what we're doing is dangerous, I believe her."

"So what then? You're just going to forget all of this? Don't you want to know if you got drugged or not? So I'm going to have to go by myself?"

"We'll find out another way." Kate's hands tighten around Max's. "Max, lets go."

Victoria seethes but makes no move to stop them. Surprisingly, instead, it is Max that pauses stopping Kate in her tracks. The latter turns to Max curiously.

"Kate…Kate, you go. I'll stay."

"What? Why?"

"In the vision, while Nathan and Frank were fighting, we didn't try to run right away. What happened was that Victoria pulled the gun out of her purse. She might have used it too, but you, Kate, you were the one to stop her." Kate's eyes widen at this revelation that she, of all people, was the one to do such a thing. "If Victoria goes alone, something…something horrible might happen."

"How cute." Victoria sneers. "Why the hell do you care? You'll just be getting rid of a bully, won't you?"

She looks at the blonde after that statement. Victoria's face is flush with anger and her shoulders are tense. She tries to give off a dismissive aura as if she didn't care but Max knows she and Kate must have hit a sore spot.

Little by little, she is slowly beginning to grasp this complex being known as Victoria Chase, though every iota of knowledge has to be fought for tooth and nail.

Swallowing down her apprehension, Max says, "When…when you apologized in my vision and explained why you do the things you do, I think I saw something special in you. Maybe Kate did too if the look on her face was right."

Kate gazes at Max silently trying to process how she might react to such a thing.

"It was like, for one brief moment, I saw all the remorse you had for your actions and…and then you changed. I mean I saw you differently, but you also changed in person. You even tried to save me and Kate. When Nathan went crazy again, you told us both to run and hide while you try to hold Nathan back. I…I…"

Max loses her words as Victoria loses her composure. Her expression indicates she didn't know how to react to all of this and her normally intense demeanor fails her. Max smiles knowing that this entire exchange must seem like something out of an alien movie to Victoria and this is probably way out of her comfort zone. It sure as hell is out of hers too.

"I still don't understand you, Victoria. I'm not sure I ever will, but…but I've witnessed a side of you that I think most don't get to see. You're a bully, but you're also a good person. I…I want to protect you too, Victoria."

Victoria reels as if struck. Her mouth opens and closes trying to formulate a response, but her entire thought process seems to shut down. Max waits patiently, however, giving her all the time she needs knowing this is not something she can respond as she usually does to. Victoria is heavily blushing too and Max is amused that, for once, she is doing that to her instead of the other way around.

At last, Victoria gathers herself taking a deep breath. "You want to 'protect' me, Max? Alright, I'll buy that. I'll make you and Kate a deal. You said Nathan left and comes back at Frank's, right? Well, we'll tail him. We'll tail him and watch. If he comes back, then I'll buy into your bullshit just a little."

Kate looks at Max worried, but the latter touches her in reassurance. "It's a deal, Victoria."

They fall into a strange silence after that. One full of contemplation and questions, but it is a silence that somehow seems more comforting than the one before. Some time later, Nathan makes his appearance and Victoria begins tailing his car.

Along the way, Max narrates bits and pieces of what she remembers. She mentions Nathan will honk his horn and comments about how loud it is. Minutes later, he honks. Kate bites her lips looking at Max in amazement, though Victoria seems to have no reaction to it.

As Max said, Nathan eventually finds his way to Frank and she points out the area where they had parked waiting. Victoria parks in-between the same set of trees and they wait. Max comments that Nathan will leave soon and, sure enough, he speeds out fifteen minutes later.

"So what's next?" Victoria asks.

"Well, in my vision, it is now that we head in to ask Frank questions, but then Nathan comes back. So we should just sit here and wait."

Less than a half hour later, Nathan's truck comes zooming past again. When it passes, Victoria glances at Max, but says nothing. Shortly afterwards, Nathan leaves again. In the silence, Victoria's gulping can be heard loudly.

"Holy _shit_ , Max. Even if I can reason away a lot of what you say, some of the things you say are just plain fucking impossible." A look comes over her face as she genuinely realizes for the first time the meaning of all this. "You…you really can…"

A pause. "We're leaving now."

Victoria speeds away heading back towards Blackwell. A frightened expression comes over her face. When they stop in the school's parking lot again, Victoria leaves without saying a word even forgetting to close her car door. Max and Kate look at each other nervously not sure what to do. She whispers to Kate to act as normal as possible and they part ways.

Max stares up at the slowly darkening skies and already notes a few visible stars. Thank goodness it's the end of the day and they won't have to go through class like this because Max probably can't act normal right now. If their reaction is any indication, Kate and Victoria can't either.

How do you act after discovering that you can tell the future? She doesn't know…which is a problem seeing as only she can answer it.

Sighing, Max leaves. No one approached her the entire way allowing her to keep to her jumbled thoughts and have breathing room, but even then, she found herself giving a deep sigh of relief when she headed back to her dorm at the end of the day.

She falls onto her bed and the idea of resting her eyes is highly tempting, but the thoughts that plagued her the entire day are still there and bothersome. She wants answers and doesn't know how to get them. She wants reassurances, but doesn't know where to find it. What can she do?

Her phone buzzes with a message and Max quickly takes it out thinking it might be Kate or Victoria. She is slightly surprised to see Chloe's name pop up. Thinking a moment, she nearly palms herself remembering the promise she made to her earlier about going to the lighthouse.

A strain of guilt goes through her. She had told Chloe she would text her, but instead, she waited so long that Chloe ended up texting her instead. The day has had so much happening that she just completely forgot. At times, the few hours that passes feels more like days with the sheer amount of things that seem to be happening to her lately. Ever since…ever since yesterday and the bathroom incident, her life seem more like a movie than, well, normal life.

Max checks her messages and it is as she suspects. Chloe is texting to ask her about the lighthouse.

_Chloe: hey max how r things_

_Chloe: u still want to go to lighthouse_

_Max: Hell yes! I still want to go. Things are complicated now, though._

_Chloe: y? whats up_

She wonders how she can possibly explain what happened. It took a lot of fighting, arguing, and ultimately showing before she could convince Kate and Victoria, yet she's still not completely sure whether the two really believe her or they're still in denial that everything that happened were just amazing coincidences. Apparently, it isn't that simple to convince people you could _tell the future_.

She did also have an opportunity to tell and convince Chloe early that morning. At the time, she had been so spooked by the repeated deaths she had to go through that the thought didn't even cross her mind. Now, though, she wanted to tell Chloe…and she has no way to convince her.

_Max: So much happened, Chloe. Feels like the world is upside down._

_Chloe: what do u mean_

_Max: It's hard to explain. I'm so confused._

_Chloe: do u want to talk about it_

_Chloe: I can come over_

_Max: I would like that. I'm in room 219 of the girls dorm._

_Chloe: your hero is coming_

Max smiles at the last message feeling a bit brighter now that someone is coming for her. Hardly ten minutes passes, though, when there is a knock on her door and she starts wondering if Chloe is really already there.

Before she could even get up, the door bursts open and Victoria and Kate rapidly walk in closing the door behind them. Max is pleasantly surprised to see them both, though also confused as to why they've come.

Kate gives her a bashful smile. "I found Victoria in my room smoking. We talked a bit and decided to come to your room."

Blinking, Max wonders in surprise that, of all places, Victoria apparently decided to head to _Kate's_ room to cool down. Nodding, Max pats her bed inviting them to sit. They come over sitting beside her.

"Tell me again about this…vision of yours." Victoria gets to the point. Kate nods in agreement looking attentive.

Max swallows. "I'm not even sure if 'vision' is the right word. It's just what I've been calling it, but it doesn't _feel_ like a vision. Everything is too real. All the emotions, the pain, the fear, and…and just everything. You'd think having a vision would feel like a dream or maybe watching a movie, but this feels more like I'm actually living it. Like I'm just having the same moment over and over again."

"Since this morning, I've been thinking that it's more like…more like I live another life and get given another chance to relive it." Max struggles with her words. "Basically, it's like I die then get reborn into the past."

Victoria nods slowly. "So…not really a 'vision per se so much as…a reincarnation?"

It strikes Max funny how appropriate that word really is though it never once cross her mind. The word matches her situation in more ways than one. She even dies right before it happens.

"But she doesn't relive everything, right?" Kate asks hesitantly. "It sounds only like she goes back to a certain time. That's not really reincarnation."

"No, it isn't." Victoria agrees. "But it's hard to see what word fits better."

"Retry?" Kate suggests. "She goes back to a time when she is given a chance to fix a critical event, right? So…a 'retry'?"

Victoria seems to think it over. "Retry…yeah, I like that word. We'll use that from now on. We're assuming a lot, though. Is what we're describing accurate, Max?"

"Well…" Max hesitates not sure how to begin on this huge concept. "It sounds right."

"Elaborate. Lets start small. First, is it right that you only go back to a certain time?"

She nods. "Yeah. So far, in every 'retry', I've only gone back just far enough to change a really major event."

"Is it out of your control how far you go back? And what kind of 'major events' are we talking here?"

"I haven't tried to control it. I don't know where to begin on how to do so. I just usually let it happen." Here, Max shudders a little and wraps her arms around herself. Seeing this, Kate touches her friend's hand in support. "As for 'major events'…all of them involves me dying."

Victoria frowns. "All of them? How many events have you gone through?"

"Three, well, four really, I guess. The first is the bathroom incident, but that happened twice. The second was when I was with Chloe. The third is the Frank one earlier today."

Kate bites her lower lip in concern. "Max…how many 'retries' did you do? Are you saying you died four times?"

"…yeah." Max says shutting her eyes in pain recalling all the horrible deaths she's been through. "I died four times."

"Oh, oh God. _Max_." Kate covers her mouth in horror.

"Don't worry, Kate. Only one was really, really bad. The one when I was with Chloe involved a horrible car accident and _both_ of us died." Max finds herself babbling and it only vaguely occurs to her that she's not doing a good job of placating Kate. "The others were…cleaner. They only involved me getting shot by Nathan."

"What the hell…" Victoria mutters incredulously. "What happened in the bathroom, that actually went on repeatedly?"

Max nods. "Right. I tried different things then and it just kept failing. The method you saw me used? That was my third time trying."

Looking into Max's eyes, Victoria whispers, "That day, you saved me and Price. Are you telling me you tried to do that more than once?"

"Yeah." She sniffles and Max is surprised to find herself crying a little. Reliving those times is making her emotions rollercoaster intensely. "It isn't that simple, though. I'm not entirely sure why but things kept changing."

"The first time, Chloe didn't show up at all. Instead, it was just you and me. Then Nathan comes in, you and him get into an argument, and he shows you his gun. You both argued, I tried to hit him with the caution sign, but he saw me and shot me. The second time, Chloe showed up but you didn't. I got shot trying to save Chloe. The third time, both of you showed up…and I finally succeeded."

"And you felt it in each one." Victoria mutters more to herself than Max. She smiles unsteadily. "Boy, you really are a little hero, aren't you?" In a sincere but unsteady voice, she says, "Thanks, uh, for that, by the way. I never had anyone do that kind of thing for me before."

"I…Victoria…" Max says not sure how to respond to the gratitude.

"Ahem." Victoria clears her throat blushing a little. "Lets get back to things. We need more details if we're to learn about your power. You said you usually just let it carry you back to whatever point, but did you notice a pattern? Is there any particular thing you're doing at the time it carries you back?"

Max needed to think it over but it soon clicks. "Sleeping. I was always sleeping at the time it brings me back."

Nodding, Victoria confirms the details, "So sleep serves as some sort of beginning marker while death serves as an ending marker. Not a lot to go on, but I think we have a good amount of information."

"Something bothers me." Kate says. "This bathroom incident…I keep hearing about this, but I'm not too sure of the whole story. What exactly happened?"

Sighing, Victoria explains the entire event to Kate. The latter takes it surprisingly well considering she just learned that her closest friend was involved in what was nearly a shooting involving two members of the Vortex Club and a random punk.

"And you said-" Kate begins looking at Max. "-that things kept changing each retry. Why? Why did it change?"

"I think it's because I did things a little differently each time. It was small things too, but it was enough to change things a lot. In all the bathroom incidents, it seem the changes all started from the classroom. In the first one, I talked to you and-"

Max stops and blushes heavily. The other two notice this immediately.

"-and I may have stare a bit too much at Victoria's clothes and she caught me."

A grin comes onto Victoria's face and she puts her head in her hand facetiously showing exasperation. Max's blush increases as she knows Victoria can almost see the situation from her small description.

"Afterwards, I left the class and went to the bathroom where things played out with Victoria coming in. The second time, I didn't talk to you or look at Victoria, but Mr. Jefferson stopped me as I tried to leave and he lectures me. Afterwards, I only see Chloe in the bathroom. The third time, I didn't talk to you but I got caught staring by Victoria again and I ignored Mr. Jefferson calling for me. That time, I saw both Chloe and Victoria in the bathroom."

Kate tries to process all of this but Victoria looks as if she understands. "I think I get it. That's annoying, though." Victoria scowls. "That makes retries hard to control because any little thing you do could have an enormous effect."

Max smiles. She hardly understands much of this herself and she is glad that talking with Kate and Victoria has now put a lot of it into perspective and they've even managed to get some details of how it works down. She doesn't know why she didn't bother to sit and figure out how to do this before and is also baffled Victoria seemed to have done it so efficiently.

Another thing catches her attention. "So wait, you both believe me? About everything?"

"Not _everything_." Victoria specifies. "But…but I admit you are very convincing. I still want more proof, but we'll have to work that out later."

Kate licks her lips and looks at Max. "Max, I…I believe everything. Everything you've done up to now just sound plain incredible. I don't know why you suddenly have this power, but it must have been a gift from God and you must have been given it for a reason."

"Kate, I don't…understand. What reason do you mean?"

"I wish I knew, Max. All I know is that you've been given a power and, since then, it sounds like you've been using it to save our lives. There is meaning in this even if we don't know it."

Max didn't quite understand, but Kate's words made her feel better so she drinks in it and accepts it gratefully. She leans in for a hug which Kate happily obliges, but the latter pushes her away a moment later grinning.

"Not that I don't like hugging you, Max, but you stink!" Kate laughs. "How about a shower and a fresh set of clothes?"

Max smiles realizing that, yes, she probably does smell. Aside from the fact that she borrowed what were likely used clothes to begin with from Chloe, she had been wearing them the entire day.

She gets up and heads over to her closet to take out night clothes. She also grabs her shower bag which is already packed with her showering supplies and a fresh towel too. Now prepared, she stops at the door to glance at the other girls.

Kate is lying down on her bed looking lost in thought. Victoria had moved to sit on her couch staring at something on her phone. Max smiles at this scene remarking internally how typical it is for both of them to be that way. She loves Kate for her personality and perhaps she's also growing to like Victoria _in spite_ of her personality, especially now knowing that she is willing to put herself at risk to protect both Kate and her.

Max places the shower bag and clothes on the floor and walks over to her school bag. Victoria notices this and groans a little knowing what's coming next. Of course, a Polaroid camera is taken out.

Moving back to the spot at the door, Max frames the room making sure Kate and Victoria are both visible despite their distance. A flash later and another keepsake. Victoria was also kind enough to ensure that she keeps her attention away from the camera to provide a more natural shot.

She places the photo and the camera into the school bag, picks back up the shower bag and clothes, and leaves for the shower. It is now getting a little late but the dorms still has signs of activity here and there. She can hear music coming from several girls' rooms, conversations too. She is almost certain she is the last to take a shower, though, and this is confirmed when she steps into a completely silent shower.

Placing her towel and shower bag on the wall mounted seat, she strips, turns on the water, and takes off the showerhead to begin washing. As expected, the feeling of hot water over her skin is heavenly and, as she washes herself, she is surprised to realize just how dirty she really was. She can actually feel the grease and grime washing off of her and her skin seems refreshed again. A little bit of shampoo in her hair and the feeling spreads to her scalp.

The sound of footsteps makes Max pause. A bit of shuffling later, she hears water turn on in another shower. She is a little surprised to hear another person taking a shower as late as she is, but shakes off the feeling and continues her shower. Once she felt sufficiently clean, Max turns off the shower and begins drying herself.

She puts on the clothes she picks out and feels a sense of relief when her own scent wafts into her nostrils. It's not that she didn't like Chloe's scent, but there's only so long she can stand the smell of weed, beer, and Chloe's own natural smell mixed together. Unfortunately, a whole day is currently a bit too much.

Shoving aside the shower curtains, she heads to a sink to brush her hair. Behind her, she can still hear the other shower going and the noise fills the background giving a bit of needed life to the room. Max has only just finished brushing her hair and had intended to start brushing her teeth when the other shower turns off. Moments later, none other than towel-wrapped Victoria steps out nearly causing Max to drop her toothbrush.

"V-Victoria?"

She nods in acknowledgement at Max but otherwise doesn't respond choosing to walk up to a nearby sink to start needling and perfecting her appearance. What really catches Max's attention, however, is that Victoria seem to have no intention of dressing herself and that makes her wonder if the blonde is one of those girls who will swagger through the halls in a towel to dress herself in her room. It takes an enormous amount of confidence to do that and she is all too willing to believe Victoria has that confidence.

And _what_ a confidence it is. Victoria's towel is just long enough to cover her chest down to roughly half her thighs. She cuts a svelte figure so the towel wraps around her body well, but she is also taller than average. If Victoria decides to bend over even slightly…

Max tries to refocus on brushing her teeth even as she could easily feel the heat come to her cheeks. She prays Victoria doesn't look over and notice it as there are enough misunderstandings between the two of them.

"Hey, let me borrow that."

Without even waiting for a response, Victoria reaches over and grabs Max's hairbrush. She brushes her hair in one spot looking as if she's not really paying much attention. A moment later, her voice returns.

"Max." Victoria's voice wavers a little. "I've been wondering. Back in the car, you said…well, you mentioned something about me talking about Rachel in the reincarnation, well, 'retry' you did? What exactly did I say?"

She bites her lips. "Nothing, really, Victoria. You said all the bullying you did was sort of like you were really aiming it at Rachel. You apologized saying that, in the end, it's not the same thing."

"I didn't say anything else?"

"Nothing. Nathan was losing his shit at the time, so there wasn't anything to say."

Victoria sighs in relief. When it seems that no explanation was forthcoming, Max takes the initiative to ask.

"Victoria, _who_ is Rachel Amber to you? In the car, you called her a bitch and whore. In the fight with Nathan, you talked like you were super pissed at her and been so for a long time. How do you know her? What did she do?"

The blonde opens and closes her mouth. Her eyes are stormy and her face twists as she tries to find a way to explain.

Suddenly, she crosses her arms and turns away. It seems she decided to ignore Max's question. She sighs feeling a little saddened. Ultimately, she knows that it doesn't really matter but, all the same, she thought that perhaps Victoria was slowly opening up a little so to have her be shut out like that is like taking a step backwards.

She averts her eyes not knowing how to respond...and, of course, that's when her eyes land directly on Victoria's chest. That's when she also remembers they're both in the showers after washing themselves and Victoria is still wearing only a towel. She's also crossing her arms in a way that accentuate her breasts.

Max quickly snaps her head in the other direction. Unfortunately, that gets Victoria's attention and she looks over. Seeing Max's growing blush and her rather obvious attempt to look nonchalant, she quickly gets the idea.

"Did you just stare at my chest?"

Refusing to look at her, Max responds, "N-no."

A pause. "…want to?"

The heat in Max's face grows dramatically and she refuses to respond. A snigger comes from Victoria as she walks away going back into the stall she used before closing the curtains. A bit of shuffling later, Victoria comes back out dressed in a negligee. A fashionable, classy negligee, of course.

Max looks down at her plain white t-shirt and comfy shorts, then back at Victoria's negligee. The self-consciousness that is omnipresent around the blonde makes itself known again.

"Geez, Max, don't be too slack jawed." Victoria rolls her eyes. "If I walk ahead of you, am I going to feel your eyes burning in my ass?"

"Don't be ridiculous." She responds hopefully more steadily than she feels.

"Oh, you're a boobs girl, huh?"

"I wasn't staring." At Victoria's bland look, she insists, "Not like that, I mean."

"Max, you're worse than every guy I've ever known. You eye-fuck me every chance you get, then deny it to the last breath whenever I catch you. At least if I push the guys enough, they'll admit it."

"It's…it's not…"

Her words die off as it feels like she's digging herself into a deeper and deeper hole. Victoria's face is so full of amusement that Max had to turn away to keep herself from feeling like crawling into a hole and dying.

She squeaks out, "Victoria, I think I'll show myself out now."

As she is about to turn tail and run for it, Victoria's voice comes out strained and a little tense.

"She was my girlfriend."

It takes a moment as Max tries to work out what she was talking about, but it hits her that Victoria is referring to Rachel Amber. There is a stunned silence that takes her a moment to get over.

"G-girlfriend? As in a girlfriend with romance and stuff? That kind of girlfriend?" Victoria nods silently and Max has to fight back her surprise. "So you hating her…was it because of a bad break-up?"

An ugly scowl comes over Victoria's face. "Lets not get into that right now. Stop staring at me too. It's annoying."

Max forces her face to look more nonchalant. "S-sorry. I'm just a little surprised. I didn't realize that you…you're…you know…"

"What?" Victoria snipes. "That I'm into pussy?"

She flinches a little. "…yes."

"You got a problem with that?"

"No. No! Not at all! I was just surprised. That's all. I thought you were, you know, straight."

"I mostly am. I just happen to find some girls attractive." She sighs. "It's just my fucking luck that Rachel happens to be one of those girls. Not just one of them, but the first. God, I wish I never met her."

A feeling of sympathy passes through her for Victoria but then she starts remembering something. "Wait a minute. Rachel Amber was your girlfriend…"

"Yes, we established that."

"But I remember you also told me that she was also Chloe's lover." Max stares into Victoria's impassive face. "Is that the reason you dislike her? Because Rachel and you broke up and she got with Chloe?"

Victoria's lips thin. Max stares into her brown eyes and something else occurs to her.

"Wait, there's also something else. You called Rachel a whore before. Is…did she…?" Victoria remains silent staring, so Max takes a breath and asks what's on her mind. "Did she cheat on you with Chloe?"

There is a tense pause, then she turns away in anger. A slight nodding of her head indicates the truth, though.

Max's mouth drops. This is the source of their animosity? Rachel had an affair on Victoria with Chloe? She can't believe this. She won't believe this. Chloe is not that kind of person.

"Max." Victoria calls. "Don't get me wrong. Price is hardly the first person she cheated on me with. Price is just the first who succeeded in breaking up our relationship completely. _That's_ why I hate her. Nobody betrays me, Max. No one."

Her face becomes crossed. "By the way, I hope we have an understanding here. What I'm telling you here is private. Keep it to yourself. If you spread it all over Blackwell and Arcadia Bay, I will be fucking livid. Get me?"

Max raises her hands defensively. "Of course. You didn't even have to tell me – I know this is the kind of thing you just don't say to anybody and…I'm a little happy you trust me with it."

Victoria nods gazing at her. "You better appreciate it. I don't tell this to anyone. My own fucking parents don't know." Her features harden again. "Just to be even clearer, when I say not to tell anyone, I am including Kate in this. If she ever approaches me to say sorry for losing my girlfriend or some shit like that, I will tear her apart. Then I will come after _you_."

"I said I won't say a thing, Victoria. I'm not just going to pass your secrets around like candy. Why would you think I would ever do that?"

"It wouldn't be the first time it happened." She quietly says. Max's eyes widen, but Victoria brushes off any potential questions by walking away. "Anyway, lets get going now.

She leaves. Max grabs her things and follows afterwards as she digests these new revelations about Victoria, Chloe, and Rachel Amber.

Rachel Amber. Rachel Amber. Rachel Amber. She hasn't spoke to her or even seen her outside of those black and white posters, but she somehow has a way of constantly popping up more and more. Despite her disappearance, she seems omnipresent at times.

Just who is Rachel Amber?

The two head for Max's room. Outside it, Victoria turns to her again looking conflicted. Her lips parts as if she is preparing to say something when the sound of a door opening at the other end of the hallway catches both their attention. Max had thought it was some girl returning from sneaking out, but the appearance of blue hair makes her squint.

"Chloe?" Max calls hesitantly. "Chloe, is that you?"

"Max?" The voice calls back. Chloe's voice. "Hey, hippie, that you?"

She didn't need anymore confirmation. She leaves Victoria's side and rushes forward to meet her friend. Chloe, seeing her coming, runs towards her too. Before they met, Chloe slows down to prevent a collision but Max had no such intention. She slams directly into Chloe wrapping her arms around her.

"Chloe, thank goodness you're here!" Max cries nuzzling against her friend.

Thrown off balance by the impact, Chloe falls backward against the wall. She laughs good-naturedly and responds in kind wrapping an arm around Max's waist. The laughing makes her chest rumble tickling Max's face.

"I'm so glad you're here, Chloe. I'm so glad."

"Hey, hey, stop that." Chloe beams. "What's with all the mushy stuff? You said you were confused but I didn't think it was _this_ bad. What's up, Max? What's wrong? Tell me. Wait, lets talk in your-"

When Chloe stops talking and stiffens, Max looks up to see her staring at something behind her. Turning around, she sees Victoria looking directly at them and had realized she rudely left Victoria standing there.

Grabbing Chloe's hand, Max leads them back to her front door feeling somewhat nervous recalling what she learned in the bathroom. If a broken relationship is the cause of the animosity between them, forgiveness won't come easily. All the same, Victoria is staying over and she can't kick Chloe out after inviting her.

"Oh Chloe, this is my roommate, Victoria. Sorry I forgot to tell you she-"

Feeling Chloe grip her hand tighter, she turns to find the taller girl giving her a strange look. "What are you talking about, Max? Blackwell doesn't do roommates."

Smiling placatingly, Max says, "Not by design. I invited her to stay with me because she's being targeted by Nathan. I thought it would be safer."

"I see."

Swallowing, Max tries to smile again though it feels forced even to her, "Victoria, lets go in. You come in too, Chloe. I think we have a lot to talk about."

Victoria slowly opens the door and steps in leaving it opened. Max is about to follow when a hand grasp her arm harshly and turns her around. Chloe stares at her hard.

"What you wanted to talk about…is it important? I mean like _really_ important?"

Max bites her lips. "It's really important, Chloe. It could literally change everything. I'm still having trouble wrapping my mind around it."

"Then we're going elsewhere else."

"C-Chloe?" Max says in surprise. "But…I don't understand…"

"We can't trust Victoria, Max." Chloe whispers sharply. "You don't know her like I do. If what we're going to talk about is that damn important, we need privacy away from her."

"But Chloe, it's fine! Once we talk things over, you'll-"

"It's _not_ fine, Max. We're going!" Chloe tries to walk away and pull Max along, but her friend resisted. She turns back looking hurt. "Max…don't you trust me? Please, lets just go and talk about it somewhere else."

"Chloe, I do trust you. Absolutely." Max insists clasping Chloe's hands. "You just don't understand. I _know_ Victoria will take this well. See, I already told her."

There is a tense pause. "You told her…you told Victoria before you told me this all important matter? Me, your best friend that you 'absolutely' trust?"

"It's not like that, Chloe. Please don't say it like that. It was because of the timing. I told them-"

"What the fuck is taking so long?" Victoria interrupts stepping back outside. "I can hear you two whispering outside the door. Are you coming in or should I just eavesdrop?"

"Fuck off, Victor." Chloe hisses. "This has nothing to do with you."

Victoria's eyes flashes intense anger, but Max quickly touches the blonde's arms to catch her attention. Victoria looks at Max who pleads silently with her eyes. She bites her tongue to cool down and she turns walking back into the room without another word. Inside, heated whispering can be heard and Max realizes Victoria must be ranting angrily to Kate.

She looks back at Chloe who stares at her warily as if unsure of how to approach the situation. Problem is that Max doesn't know either, so she takes the only approach she knows how.

"Chloe, please come inside."

"We should go elsewhere."

" _Please_. I…I know you and Victoria have history-" Chloe looks at her curiously at that. "-but I promise you this won't be that bad." Max tug on her friend's jacket.

It is the eyes, Chloe thinks to herself. When she feels herself relent and slowly allow herself to be pull into Max's room, she attribute her willingness to be led to Max's wide, pleading eyes. When she walks in and Max shuts the door behind her, she already started internally cursing herself. Why couldn't they have gone elsewhere? Why did _Victoria Chase_ needed to be a part of whatever they were going to talk about?

She freezes. Inside the room, Victoria is sitting on the couch glaring balefully at her, but what really caught her attention is another girl sitting on Max's bed. Seeing her look, Max introduces them.

"Oh, sorry, Chloe. This is Kate Marsh, another friend of mine. She knows about this too."

Another person. Max had described this as important and world changing, yet somehow, two fucking people knew about this before her. She feels her stomach clench at this knowledge.

On a level, Chloe knew she is being petty, but she couldn't help it. She wants to be the one Max comes to first when she has a problem, not the third. Weren't _they_ the childhood friends? How did they reach a point where Victoria and this other girl outclassed her?

Tugging on her jacket again. Max is again staring at her pleadingly and she follows the tugging to where the smaller girl pulls out her desk chair giving Chloe a seat. She takes it, though sitting down does nothing for her tenseness. Max touches her shoulder carefully before moving away.

On the bed, Kate is rubbing at her eyes blearily after having woken up from dozing a little. Victoria had come in and started ranting something about dirty punks nearly scaring her thinking that she was referring to her. When Chloe steps in a moment later, though, she is mystified at the appearance of this strange person and a glance at Victoria reveals that she is the true source of the blonde's annoyance.

Max takes stock of the room and sees what kind of daunting task lies ahead of her. Despite the chasm between Victoria and Kate, they've somehow managed to make this…this partnership thing work so far. Max had naturally assumed that if two such different people who has such a poor history could come together to solve the mystery of the link between Nathan and Kate, then surely Chloe and Victoria could come together to talk about the possibility of Nathan being a danger to both.

What she had failed to take into consideration was the possibility that the chasm between Chloe and Victoria is far more vast and insurmountable than that between Victoria and Kate. A deep chasm that is making itself more apparent the longer the two remain in the room with each other.

And Max gets the sense that she's not even seeing half of what really lies beneath.

Swallowing, she breaks the silence, "Alright, everyone, this is my friend, Chloe Price. Chloe, this-" She points to Kate. "is Kate Marsh and you already know Victoria."

Neither Victoria nor Chloe acknowledges any of the introductions or says a word of hello. Kate, who normally would have, is cowed by the intensity of the room and remains silent too.

"We are all here…" Max continues. "…because we all share a common problem: Nathan Prescott."

She finally has Chloe's and Kate's full attention. Out of everyone here, only she and Victoria could be said to be fully in the know and that's merely because they were both involved in everything that recently happened.

"Me, Victoria, and Chloe were almost shot by Nathan in the girls' bathroom yesterday. Kate here had been drugged and possibly harmed by him."

Chloe looks at Kate curiously but says nothing. Kate remains stoic in front of the introduction. Max swallows the lump in her throat already feeling wilted.

"We all share the common thread of having run-ins with Nathan and I think all of us wish to have something done about him. Some of us want answers while others here just want him put away." Max pauses getting ready to get to the more supernatural part of this. "There are many ways we can go about this, but now, we have a secret weapon on our hands. My power."

She waited. As expected, Chloe's voice eventually appears, "Your…what? Max, your 'power'?"

Max nods. "Yeah. This is the very important thing I was telling you about. We discovered that I go through something called a 'retry'. That is I can relive through a portion of the day. Basically, if I die, I go back to the last point I was asleep and relive everything again."

Chloe gives Max an incredulous look. She glances at Kate and particularly at Victoria to see if she was being fucked with, but both held solemn expressions. Finally, she looks at Max again swallowing.

"I'm…having a bit of a hard time buying this, Max. Help me? Pretty please?"

"It's hard, I know. I should have convinced you when I had the chance, but…I was scared and confused then."

"When you had the chance…?"

"When you drove me to Blackwell this morning." Max says biting down the bile she feels at the memory. "We had died on the road."

Chloe feels her throat tighten. At that time, she had an intense feeling of something being wrong and that Max was hiding something from her. Was that it? But it's ridiculous. It's impossible.

"Explain it more, please."

Biting her lips, Max continues, "Do you remember how I asked you to buckle up and not smoke? There's a reason."

"The first time it happened, something went wrong while you were smoking and you got ash in your eyes. You accidentally honked your horn scaring some deer we were passing. One ran out, we hit it, and things spiraled out of control. We hit something and you flew out of the windshield. You…were you bleeding and there was blood everywhere."

She takes a deep shivering breath. "Something flew through the car dashboard and killed me. When…when I opened my eyes again, I was in your bed. The nightmare you thought I was having was actually a retry."

Chloe is shaking her head left and right unable to bring herself to believe this story. Max seems so sincere in her explanation and, bizarrely, this Kate and even Victoria seem to fully believe it, but this is a story wild beyond anything she's ever heard.

"I should have told you at the time, but I was scared and confused. It is only recently that I finally collected myself enough to finally start talking. I'm sorry, Chloe, but it's the truth."

Nobody spoke for a long time. Chloe is the one to break the silence.

"I don't know how to take this, Max."

"She is pretty persuasive." Victoria mutters. "Today, she was able to predict everything that happened repeatedly. It's not like we just believed her right off the bat, but it's hard to deny what we were seeing."

Chloe swallows. "Say…say I believe this, what will happen now? What are you planning to do with this power?"

"Use it to stop Nathan." Max says confidently. Perhaps the only thing she can say confidently in all of this.

Her confidence drains when Chloe scowls, though. She figures if there was one single thing in all of this they could all believe in and do without any thought is to fight against Nathan. If the expression of her friend's face is any indication, though, it seems Chloe had little desire to do anything about Nathan.

The punk girl's next words confirm her thoughts. "I don't really care much about Nathan, to be honest."

" _What?_ " Victoria cries incredulously standing up. "Are you fucking kidding me, Price? He almost shot you. Why the fuck don't you care?"

"He's not trying to shoot me now."

"Oh, is that all? Would you like for us to wait until he tries to kill you again?"

Chloe sighs. "Look, Princess Bitch-"

"No, _you_ look, Price. I don't know if you're so fucking braindead from all the drugs or what, but something is up with Nathan. Max says he actually pulled a gun on us after we tailed him at Frank's."

"It's true, Chloe." Max adds trying to convince her.

"So if you have the slightest sense of self-preservation, you'd-"

"Look, I'll deal with that when it comes, alright?" Chloe interrupts shouting. "Right now, there's something so much more important to me. Besides, I don't see why you care. Aren't you friends with that prick?"

"I am. That's why I'm doing this. Something is seriously wrong with Nathan and he's refusing to talk to me. I want to find out what's going on too."

"You can play action therapist on your own. Like I said, I'm busy with something more important."

"What the hell is more important than this? Again, you almost got shot. There's nothing more pressing than this, you idiot!"

"There is something more important and it should be important to _you_ too, but I'm not surprised it's not. You never really did give a shit."

Victoria's lips press together tightly. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, sorry, my mistake for thinking you'd remember her." Chloe bites. "I'm talking about fucking Rachel! Did you forget she's been missing for months now? I'm the only fucking person still looking for her and I'm not giving up until I find her. Why aren't you too?"

"Why should I?" Victoria hiss. "She has nothing to do with me, remember?"

There is something in that word 'remember' that presses the point that Rachel is the source of a great deal of animosity between Victoria and Chloe. Max flinches knowing what exactly is behind the animosity and what Victoria like means when she says that.

"Even if she doesn't have anything to do with you anymore, I would have thought you'd be worried enough to try anyway. Guess not all of us have the soul to." Chloe says as Victoria's face twists in fury. "Nathan is a rich fuck who does whatever he wants. There's nothing I can do about him, so I'm putting my focus on more important things right now."

"Well, what a fucking waste of time it was for you to come around then. Feel free to leave and don't let the door hit your ass on the way out."

"Fuck you, Victor! I didn't come for _you_ or your shitty problems. I came for Max. This is her room. If you don't like me, how about you get the fuck out?"

"Did you forget, Price? I'm her roommate now."

"That makes no goddamn sense whatsoever." Chloe snaps. "I saw the room chart when I came in. Your room is literally right across from Max's. How the hell is staying here supposed to protect you?"

Victoria hesitates a bit. "Nate has no idea that Max is involved in any way. He won't think to check her room for me."

"He would think even less to check random hotels for you. Can't your rich preppy ass stay at one?"

"Well, I decided to stay _here_ and I don't think it's any of your goddamn business why. I don't like taking advice from lanky drug addicts who apparently thinks weed can replace food. You said you didn't want anything to do with this. That means you officially have nothing to do with this, so fuck off already!"

Chloe stands too. "First off, everybody fucking knows you do your share of drugs too, so stop lording that over me as if it's something special. Oh, and if the drugs are helping my weight, you could use some more to decrease the size of your ass. Next, again, Max is _my_ friend, so I think-"

The argument is quickly building up. Victoria is clenching her fists and breathing heavily looking as if she's about to throttle Chloe while the latter had been looking like that from the start. Max, paralyzed by the sheer heat of both their anger, may have let the argument evolved into a fistfight. However, feeling someone clasping her hand, she turns around seeing Kate's pleading eyes.

"Max, stop the fight. Please!"

She swallows hesitating. "I'm…I'm not sure how, Kate. What do I do?"

"Chloe's your friend, right?" Kate asks. "Just talk to her. I'm sure she'll listen to you. Please, Max?"

Swallowing again, Max nods. Turning to face the shouting pair and feeling a strain of fear pass through her, she takes courage from the fact that Kate believes in her ability to calm the flaming anger of these two intimidating women.

"Guys, could you please-" She began futilely as their shouts overwhelm her quiet voice. She tries again. "Victoria, Chloe, please-…Look, guys, you're going to wake-…"

Max takes a deep breath. " _Chloe Price! Victoria Chase!_ "

It wasn't even the loudest she could yell or even that much louder than before. Perhaps it was the sheer force she was trying to exert or the fact that she used their full names like an angry parent, but regardless, her call had the effect of making both stop and turning to face her. Now having their attention, Max realizes that perhaps she should have thought on what to say next.

"I know…I know that you both don't like each other, but this is far more important than that. All of us have been targeted by Nathan. If we are to protect our lives, we _need_ to work together." Max turns to Chloe. "Chloe, I know Rachel is much more important to you, but maybe we can work something out. Alongside figuring out how to stop Nathan, maybe we can find out what happened to Rachel too."

Victoria looks upset. "Max, we don't have the time to indulge her whims!"

"But we need Chloe's help, Victoria!" Max pleads. "And beside, you really want to find Rachel too, don't you?"

The blonde stops and her eyes harden in warning. "What are you talking about, Max? Why would I want to find her?"

She phrases the next few words carefully. "You're really angry at Rachel and you seem to hate her, but I…I think, in the past, you had actually cared about her…as a friend. And I know that once you care deeply about someone, you can't just let them go so easily no matter how much time passes."

It was a comment born from experience. Max glances at Chloe whose eyes bore into hers. For five years, Max had been the one to abandon and leave Chloe. Yet even now, barely a day after they've met again, she has reconnected on a tremendous level. Time doesn't always change everything.

There are still cracks she must repair, but she knows better than anyone that you can't just let go of someone you cared about easily.

"Even still." Victoria says easing a little. "Searching for Rachel can come at any time. Nathan is a more pressing need. Max, things could seriously explode if we don't do it quickly."

"But we have our secret weapon, right? I can warn us ahead of time." Seeing Victoria still hesitating, Max tries the one approach she does best. Pleading. "Victoria, _please_. With Chloe's help, I know we can do so much more!"

It takes a minute, but finally, Victoria sighs and falls back onto the couch. "Alright, we'll help look for Rachel too." There is another pause until she looks up into Max's eyes. The latter startle seeing that, for the first time, there is a sincere look of pleading in the blonde's eyes. "But can we do something else too? For me?"

"Oh, here we go!" Chloe laughs mockingly falling back onto the desk chair. "Tit for tat, right, Victor? So how much of our souls will you take today?"

Surprisingly, Victoria completely ignored her in favor of keeping her eyes locked with that of Max's. Even without any of this, Max probably would have been willing to do a lot for her, especially when she makes a face like that. However, after conceding to Chloe's demands, it also seems fair if Victoria wants to make a request too.

However, aside from all of that, she is genuinely curious as to what she could want.

"What is it, Victoria? What can I do for you?"

Rather than becoming relieved, Victoria becomes more apprehensive and nervous. She takes a deep breath and her body steels itself.

"I…was hoping that, perhaps, we could try to _help_ Nathan rather than hurt him."

The following silence is intense and even Victoria flinches. Despite the lack of response, Max really isn't that surprised. From the start, Victoria has shown repeatedly that she cared about Nathan.

When she wanted to run, Victoria wanted to talk to him. When she avoided him, Victoria tried to contact him. It shouldn't be the slightest bit surprising that Victoria is asking them to do something to help Nathan rather than harm him. This may be the primary reason behind her helping them besides trying to find out what is going on with Nathan.

Chloe laughs mockingly. "And here's the real reason our Vortex Princess wanted to help." Chloe's smirk quickly morphs into an angry scowl. "I knew it, _I knew it_! The idea of you fucking helping anyone makes me want to laugh! The real reason you did this to begin with is that you wanted to protect your prick boyfriend! You just-"

"Fuck you, Price!" Victoria regains her composure and jumps up from the couch again ready for a fight. "Nathan is damn near my brother! He's not like what you think. He has…a lot of problems, especially at home with his parents. He needs medication to act right."

"I…I don't know why Nate is suddenly doing this. I've known him for close to two years now and he's never done anything close to this before."

"Oh, you know him pretty well, huh?" Chloe bites bitterly.

"Yeah, I do, Price." Victoria bites back. "I _know_ Nathan Prescott. For him to go off like this means he's under a huge amount of pressure. Damn if I know what, though. I can't think of anything or anyone who aggravated him so badly that he starts pulling guns and trying to shoot random people."

Max glances at Chloe. She has a vague idea of who may have been the source.

"Now here's my question: Why was he trying to shoot you? What did you do?"

"I didn't do shit to your boyfriend, Victor." Chloe says coldly. "You said he apparently goes off the deep end whenever he's under pressure. So why do you think I did anything?"

"Because he gets that kind of pressure whenever someone is doing something to him. The last few times this happened, his family was practically committing him to an asylum. This time, _you_ must have done something too. You need to tell me."

"I don't need to tell you shit!" Chloe says heatedly. "If you want to help your boytoy, fuck off and help him yourself! Don't try to pull us along with your scheme."

"You did something. What the fuck did you do, Price?"

"Fuck you!"

"Guys, _please_." Max cries stopping them from fighting again. "Guys, I promise you…I promise you I'll do everything I can to help you both. Chloe, I'll help you find Rachel. Victoria, I'll…try to help you with Nathan. We can do this, I know we can. We can do this _if we work together_. So, please…truce?"

The tense atmosphere around the room pauses as the two women stare each other down. Chloe is the first to back off, though. She falls back on the desk chair muttering 'fine' and that she needed a joint. Afterwards, Victoria sits on the couch again and turns her head away which is as good as an agreement from her.

At last, they had some semblance of a partnership. It took some negotiating and their task is now so much complex than simply 'stopping Nathan', but Max truly believes it will work out. She goes and sits on the bed beside Kate who hugs Max appreciating her ability to stop the fight.

"You did great, Max. Really, wow!" Kate whispers, though in the silence of the room, her voice is likely heard by all.

"Thanks, Kate." Max checks her phone. "Hey, it's getting kind of late. Can you stay a little longer or do you need to go?"

Surprised, Kate checks her own phone. "I hadn't realized we've been here so long. I guess I must have lost track of time." Max snorts a little knowing how she felt. "Max, will you be okay alone?"

The question is whispered as Kate looks at her in concern. She glances at Chloe and Victoria. She isn't confident about it, but she thinks she can handle them for the time being. She nods to Kate.

"Yeah, don't worry about me. Get some sleep and I'll text you tomorrow, alright?"

Kate nods. "I'll go, but Max…when you're ready to do things, call me, okay? I want to help."

Max flinches remembering the retry and how Nathan blamed Kate and tried to shoot her. She breathes a little easier thankful that she has the ability to prevent such disasters. All the same, she is hesitant to include Kate in such things, but her sincerity wins Max over and, to be truthful, she wants the support.

"Alright, I will."

Nodding again, Kate kisses Max on the side of her mouth before getting up. She says a soft good-bye to Victoria and Chloe before departing. As her footsteps fade, Victoria turns to Chloe scowling and Max immediately tenses believing another argument is about to break out.

"Speaking of it being late, shouldn't you be getting home, Price?"

Chloe glances at her then gets up. She walks forward a bit…and immediately drops to Max's side on the bed. "Max, let me stay for the night?"

"O-oh, yes, sure. You can stay, Chloe."

"Now wait a minute, the dorms are for Blackwell students only." Victoria cuts in. "You got your ass kicked out, Price."

"The dorms-" Chloe begins smirking. "-are also supposed to be one student per room. If it really bothers you, though, Max can spend the night at my house. How about it, Max?"

Eyes narrow, Victoria bites, "You just have to be a bitch every step of the way, don't you?"

"Fuck off." Chloe replies turning on her side.

Max, seeing the argument die down, breathes a little more freely. Victoria scowls at Chloe and walks over to Max leaning down to whisper.

"I'm sleeping on the couch tonight."

Blinking, Max asks, "You're not taking the bed?"

"Price obviously decided herself that she's getting the bed. I rather not sleep there now that her stink is all over it." She wrinkles her nose as she says this. "Anyway, I need to get a blanket and pillow from my room. Come help?"

She walks out without even waiting for an answer. Max remains still with the 'yes' answer still in her mouth before sighing and following after Victoria. She briefly wonders if Taylor and Courtney also often get asked to do things this way.

Inside the room across her own, she finds the blonde leaning against the wall clutching a pillow. She waves a hand towards the bed and Max obliges walking over to gather up her blanket into her arms. She pauses in surprise looking down – what is this feathery light material the blanket is made of? It feels…expensive.

"Is this everything, Victoria?"

"Yeah, just about." She grimaces a little. "I can't believe I have to take the couch because Price showed her ass at the last minute for no reason at all. Can't she visit during the day like a normal person?"

Max coughs a bit. "Well…I sort of invited her."

"You…invited her? To come at this time of the night?"

"Well, I wasn't planning for it to be this late. I asked her to come a little after we came back from, you know, Frank's. I didn't think she'd be this late."

Victoria groans. "Great. As much as you're beginning to grow on me, I don't understand you. Whenever I get the slightest inkling that I'm beginning to get you, something comes up that changes everything."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm talking about Price. Of all the people you could be attracted to, it had to be her? Frankly, I'd be less surprised if you got together with Kate."

Max blinks. Then she blinks again. She looks at Victoria's face and realizes the blonde is serious. She actually believes that she and Chloe are…that they're…

"Wha…? I'm not attracted to Chloe. We're just best friends."

Victoria raises an eyebrow. "You're not attracted to her? The both of you are all over each other."

"We are _not_. Besides, she's Rachel's lover. You said so yourself."

"She _was_ Rachel's lover. If Price hadn't made it clear already, Rachel has been missing for a while. I bet she's ready to move on."

"Onto me?"

"You seriously haven't noticed the looks she's been throwing you every now and then? It seems pretty obvious to me that at least she's into you."

Max starts a bit. "I…haven't noticed." Her eyes furrow a bit. "Are you sure?"

"I noticed you seem to be all over her too. The moment she appeared here, you ran to her like a puppy wagging its tail and glomp her."

"I didn't _glomp_ -"

"You tackle hugged her so hard she had to use the wall to stop the both of you from being knocked over. You should have seen the look on your face. You should have seen the look on _her_ face."

"That's…you're just misunderstanding. She was probably just happy to see me. It doesn't mean that she's in _love_ with me."

Victoria sighs exasperatedly. "The _looks_ she's been throwing you, Max. I swear to Christ she looked jealous as fuck when she heard we were bunking together. And did you see how pissed off she was when she heard you told me and Kate about your power before her?"

Here, she stares at Max blandly. "You throw her a few googly eyes yourself."

"I do not!"

Rolling her eyes, Victoria sighs, "Denial. I hope Rachel burns in hell, but I do admit I miss how straight forward she is. Everyone else is just so damn awkward."

Max pauses. "How many girls have you gone out with?"

"That's none of your damn business."

"You've been ribbing me this whole time. I can't return the favor?"

"No, you can't."

"Were they all hot?" Max ignores her. Victoria glares. "Did any of them happen to look like Chloe? Kate? Me?"

She laughs a little. Her laughter is roughly cut off by the chilling look Victoria gives her and the room feels ten degrees colder. A moment later, the blonde roughly walks past her muttering to hurry up with her blanket.

Max bites her lips a little wondering if she said something wrong. Brushing aside the thought, she thinks about Victoria's words instead. Is…is it possible Chloe is attracted to her?

It doesn't seem possible. She would have noticed…right?

Feeling her cheeks heat up, Max shakes her head to forget the line of thinking. Clutching the blanket a little tighter, she leaves the room. Back in her room, she spots Victoria lying impatiently on the couch with her arms crossed.

"About time you got here. My blanket, please?"

Max hands her the blanket which she drapes over herself delicately. Victoria closes her eyes and waves a dismissive hand to let her know she's no longer needed. Max frowns at her, then looks over at her bed where Chloe remains in the same position she had even before they left to get Victoria's things, though Max's blanket is now wrapped around her. There is an open spot beside her on the bed.

She hesitates, but walks over and climbs in trying not to wake up Chloe. Almost as soon as she lied down, though, Chloe turns around and pulls Max under the blanket with her. Her eyes were still closed, but a small smile comes onto her face.

"Not as big as my own room, but homey."

She smiles too. "Mi casa es su casa."

Chloe doesn't respond and, a few minutes later, the smile slips off her face and her breathing evens. Listening to the rhythmic breathing, she slowly begins to drift off too.

Part of her mind slips to the thought that this is a sort of 'save point' for her should anything happen the next day and that makes her shiver knowing that the 'save point' is only useful should she _die_. Her shivering makes Chloe clutch a little firmer.

Another part reminds her that most girls her age probably don't sleep with their friends like this and she wonders if Victoria had noticed their position yet. She probably has and will laugh at Max tomorrow. She also wonders how she feels about Chloe and the answer continues to be 'she's my best friend'.

Somewhere in the recesses of her mind, though, she recognizes that she doesn't really mind being in this position with her.


	6. Chapter 06

**Chapter 06**

Max had a strange dream.

In her dream, she is walking through Blackwell, except everything is wrong. The lockers were all opened with paper, backpacks, books, and various other school equipments scattered everywhere in various states of disarray.

She peeks into Ms. Grant's class and the room is like the hallways. The storage cases were turned over and the chemicals were spilled all over the floor. The desks students sit at had been torn to pieces with parts of their foundations still nailed down. The windows and walls were covered in various shades of some kind of smudge possibly from the chemicals.

In Mr. Jefferson's class, _there_ was the worst scene.

The room is in an equally similar state of chaos, but scattered through the various destroyed furniture and equipment were the bloody bodies of students. She sees the bleeding face of her teacher, Mark Jefferson, lying beside Victoria who had lost a limb. In other places, she sees faces peeking out – Kate, Warren, Alyssa, Dana, Juliet, and more. In the back near a corner, she saw even Chloe and Nathan despite neither being in her class.

The walls were sprayed painted with messages in a blood red color. The back had quotes from Mr. Jefferson's lectures and the side read like paper messages between students. The front of the class on the blackboard only carried a single message: _Best wishes to Victoria Chase! Have fun in San Francisco!_

Her attention is taken away from the messages when she looks outside. Through the windows, Max gets her first glimpse of the outside world. Trees had been uprooted, the founder's statue had fallen over and lies in rubbles of the former fountain. The light poles, rope fence, trash cans, metal railing, and so much more all lie destroyed on the ground or twisted in its foundation. In all this destruction, she notices little limbs and patches of blood here and there. In this scene also lie many dead animals.

Despite this display of death and destruction in her classroom and the outside world, Max couldn't seem to feel any sense of despair. Or shock. Or anger. Or any other feeling. Instead, she could only move from area to area as dead as the rest of her school.

Leaving Mr. Jefferson's class, she decides to head outside. As she walks along the hallways, there is movement throughout the school. The locker doors begins slamming shut and opening again, the debris in the area shift over themselves, and the bulletin boards fall off.

Near the entrance, the exit doors have been torn off their hinges and now lie broken on the floor. She could easily see outside and that's how she noticed something had changed.

The debris outside are being moved around. There's lightning and thunder and howling wind. As she moves closer to outside, things gets worse. The school is now shaking so hard that the walls are beginning to crack and break apart, the debris outside are not just shifting but being picked up and flung around.

The lightning is like a thousand camera flashes are going off all at once, the thunder like bombs being detonated right beside her, and the wind is a deafening screech. She approached the exit door frame and, outside, she sees a glimpse of some kind of swirling cloud. That is when she wakes up.

Unlike the retries, she wakes up much more peacefully. In the waken world, however, she is not protected by dead emotions and the scenes she remembers from the dream affects her more deeply than it did when she was asleep. A muted mixture of despair and confusion goes through her.

Taking a deep breath, Max notices that she is a little bit chilly and takes stock of her surrounding. Beside her, Chloe is snoring lightly still sleeping. The sight of her brings relief and Max smiles a little.

She slips off the bed and looks around the room. It is only then that she notices Victoria is not around. Her pillow and blanket is still on the couch, but the blonde isn't anywhere. Glancing at her window blinds and seeing how dark it still is, Max checks her phone and realizes it's still early enough for the sun to not even rise yet. Where is Victoria?

Growing more concerned, Max quietly leaves her room. She pauses in surprise as she sees Victoria staring out the window at the end of the hall. Hearing her come out, Victoria turns around glancing at her briefly before turning back.

Max walks up beside her and was going to ask her if she's alright when she doubletakes seeing what Victoria is staring at. It is snowing.

"W-what is this? It's snowing?" Max whispers.

Victoria nods. "I first saw it when I looked out your blinds and decided to come out here to take a closer look." After a pause, she continues, "I had looked up what's the highest possible temperature snow could fall at. I've read 40 degrees in some places. 50 in others, but never higher. Both sounds like bullshit to me too."

Another pause. "It is 67 degrees right now, Max. This shouldn't be possible."

It is an obvious statement, but Victoria had said it to affirm her own disbelief. So many things have already happened over the course of two days and now even the weather has seemingly turned upside down.

"Everything feels so wrong." Max whispers. Victoria turns to look at her. "Nathan, my power, and now this."

"And us."

"Huh?"

"You don't think so?" Victoria says sardonically. "Two days ago, we were enemies. My only thoughts about you, Kate, and Price were the best method I could use to fuck all of you. Now I'm having sleepovers and making girltalk about crushes and shit."

Max frowns. "I wouldn't have called you my enemy, Victoria. I…I admit I did dislike you because you're really mean at times. I still always thought that, under different circumstances, we would have been friends."

"Different circumstances. You mean like getting powers and Nathan losing his mind?"

"No. Different circumstances as in instead of mocking me everyday, you would instead come up and say you like my hair or clothes or something. Or maybe that we go take photos together. It would have been the same even two days ago. I don't like fighting, Victoria."

"That would have never happened, Max. _I_ receive the compliments and others give it. Others make requests and I deign to respond favorably or not. That's how it works. You know what, though? Even if it was you who come to me with compliments and requests, I would have refused anyway."

"Why?" Max asks frustrated. "What is it about me that you dislike?"

"Everything, really. Your clothes, your appearance, and especially the fact that Mark is so taken with you. Every fucking day, it's Max Caulfield this, Max Caulfield that. You get a question right and he takes the opportunity to kiss your ass. The best I get is a 'correct, Victoria'." Her eyes narrow. "That pisses me off. That alone makes me think of us as enemies."

"I'm _not_ your enemy, Victoria. These two days alone should have proven that."

Her face shifts into a more neutral expression. "Yes, these last two days have been a test of everything I thought, but what about after all this, Max? What then?"

"Then we can go watch a movie together or something. We're friends now."

"That easy, huh?"

"That easy." Max nods. "Were you thinking you were going to go back to the way things were? Seriously? Do you think I still dislike you? I don't. I think even Kate is beginning to warm up to you, but it'll probably take her some more time. Me, though? I'm already there. Why do you think I agreed to help with Nathan? I could just have easily lied and plan to take him down anyway."

"You agreed because you need me since I know him best." Victoria returns harshly. Her expression becomes angry. "And you won't lie because I will fucking make all of your lives miserable if you fuck with me, Max Caulfield. I will-"

"Stop it! Victoria, stop it!" Max cuts in sharply. "I did it in the first place and I'm not lying because _you're my friend_. Damn it, Victoria, this isn't some game of politics. You don't need threats, incentives, or logic for this kind of thing. Sometimes, I do things just because I want to be nice and it makes me feel good."

Victoria looks as if she was going to argue, but then her expression breaks a little bit and she turns away to stare outside the window with listless eyes. Max's frustration grows a bit before it hits her what is wrong. Last night, Victoria did much the same thing and she let something slip.

"Victoria." Max begins softly. "You've been hurt in the past, haven't you?" Brown eyes turn to look at her. "Last night, you made me promised to not tell anyone about, uh, Rachel, and you mentioned that it wouldn't be the first time your secrets were let out. I get it – you've been betrayed in the past, haven't you?"

She rolls her eyes. "Duh. I bet you think you're so sweet and warm compared to me, huh, Max Caulfield? What you are is naïve. You have _some_ talent, I'll give you that, but that'll only take you so far. You'll need my strength and you're going to learn it whether you want to or not. The animals out there feed on innocence and naïveté. I know this firsthand."

Max shakes her head and puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Victoria, it's not like that with me. I'm not looking to take advantage of you or anything like that. I love you. I-"

The blonde slaps her hand off making Max jump back in surprise. Victoria glares at her, "Don't say that kind of shit to me again."

Then she turns away. Max stares flabbergasted then sighs. She leans against the wall. She knows she shouldn't push, but she can't help it.

"What do you have against me, Victoria? We're friends now but you act more like we're enemies having a truce. _Why_ can't we be friends? Is it really just because Mr. Jefferson likes me so much?"

The blonde's lips turns into a slight sneer. She didn't respond for a while and Max had already believed she intended to ignore her when some words came out.

"You look like her."

Max's eyes furrow. "I…look like her? Like who?"

"Like my second girlfriend."

"Your second girlfriend." Max repeats. "And you hate me because I resemble your ex? That's it?"

"Are you surprised I'm that petty?" Victoria smirks. "The two of you…same stupid looking face. Same ugly freckles every-fucking-where like someone stabbed her face repeatedly with a syringe. Same type of haircut, except the hair color was different. She had black hair but liked to keep it dyed blonde. You both have the same eyes, though, down to even the same shade of color."

Victoria's smirk turns into a sneer. "She told me that same shit. 'I love you, Victoria', 'We'll always be together, Victoria', and all that fucking mushy bullshit. I was stupid enough to believe her."

Max had become silent as Victoria spoke. Her wide eyes stare into Victoria's own and they soften as understanding begins to filter in.

"We did everything together. Shopping, movies, amusement parks. She was poor so I usually had to pay for everything, but I didn't mind because I wanted her with me. Things just spiraled more and more. We became connected on every social media we had, our friends became the other's friends, her things ended up in my room, my things ended up in her room. We were also at each others' house every single day."

"My parents would comment that the only reason why I didn't have a boyfriend was because I spent all my time with Megan. I would just say that boys approach us all the time."

"I think I was in love with her." Victoria smiles sincerely before her face twists turning malicious. "Too bad she didn't feel the same. You know when I first noticed something was off? When she began being protective of her phone. It was a little trick I learned from my Rachel days; Rachel being my first girlfriend who pulled the same fucking shit."

Silently, Max reaches up to touch Victoria's hand. She slaps it away.

"Thing is that you can't be on guard all the time. I simply waited until she forgot to take her phone with her when she went to the bathroom then I looked through it – the dye must have seeped into her brain because she forgot to change the PIN to her phone. First place I checked was her texts, of course. I found a guy named Brad."

"From there, finding information was easy considering how easily I could gain access to her email. Boy, did I find a lot of tasty morsels. Comedy, romance, the whole shebang. There was still one more thing I wanted to know, though, did they have sex? She wasn't around me as much as she used to be. There were times she wanted to be alone all of a sudden. So I thought so, but I had to know for sure, Max. I decided to follow her one day. I found out that, yes, they did have sex. That Brad was a handsome devil."

"How do you think I reacted, Max?" When no answer came, she repeated herself. "Answer me. How do you think I reacted?"

Max swallows. She thinks of how Victoria acts here at Blackwell and it now seems like she may know the source of that behavior.

"Did you humiliate her? Mock her every chance you get? Record videos of her?"

"Right." Victoria says unblinkingly. "I didn't just lose it. I went through too many lovers and break-ups to react that childishly. No, I wanted to fucking destroy her. To betray _me_? And after everything I did for her? Everything she told me? No one fucking plays Victoria Chase, Max Caulfield. Fucking no one."

"So here's what I did: I gathered up a lot of photos where we were kissing. Even a few where we were naked together. I packed them together in an envelope and I stored it away. Then I friended Brad using another friend's account on social media. I was ready."

"The first thing I did was picked up a fake positive pregnancy test, then sent Brad a message from my friend's account congratulating him on his new family and not to tell Megan I let the 'secret' out. Suddenly, she fell into a depression and wouldn't answer calls or texts for a week. When she finally showed up again, she came to me asking if she could stay over because she was feeling a little depressed. The poor thing."

"I insisted on us going out to dinner instead with a friend. The same friend that helped me fuck up Brad, of course. So we went to a nice – and crowded – restaurant where I decided to tell her I know everything. The look on her face was awesome."

Max had to turn away almost able to visualize everything that happened. The feelings that must have stormed inside Megan and Victoria at the time as their relationship fell apart. Victoria's hand lifts up to force her head back, though. When she tries to close her eyes instead, the hand clamps hard on her face until she opens her eyes again.

"She tried to stutter an excuse, but I wasn't having any of it. I shouted her down in my loudest voice making sure everyone around us hears, then I took the liberty of dumping all the drinks and food over her head. My friend recorded everything, of course."

"I was her ride there, so I was her ride home too. She sobbed the whole way home and my friend kept recording." Victoria gives an emotionless and stilted laugh. "When we got to her house, she rushes inside, but the fun wasn't done yet. Her parents asked me panicking what had happened and I outright admitted we had a bad break-up. They went very quiet at that. I gave them the envelope with all the photos of us together and then I left."

Victoria looks at Max with cold eyes. "Her parents were bible thumping conservatives, Max. How do you think they reacted when they found out their daughter was in a lesbian relationship?" Her eyes glazed over as if in remembrance. "She stopped coming to school after that. A week after that night, all of her social media accounts is suddenly deleted. Our teacher comes in one day and says that Megan had moved away."

A lull comes over Victoria putting in a kind of trance where she just recounts the story without any emotion. "I didn't hear anything about her for months. Eventually, one of my friends on social media message me her obituary. It said she had killed herself. Her parents had her committed and she fell into a long depression. When I saw her photo, it was a newer one and I hardly even recognized her. She-"

Max bursts into tears surprising Victoria so much she let go and backed off. A silence falls over them both as Victoria stares at Max who continues sobbing unabated for several minutes.

When her sobbing died down enough for her to get words through, Max stutters, "What a horrible story. You really shouldn't have one that, Victoria." Victoria's face is expressionless. "She shouldn't have hurt you either, but you went way too far."

Wiping away at her face, Max looks at her, "Are you sorry, Victoria? Do you regret it?" When Victoria didn't respond, Max takes a step forward. "You call this strength, Victoria. This isn't strength. This is pain cloaked in cynicism. You can be better than this. I can help you."

Victoria's eyes flashes. "Don't fucking patronize me, Max Caulfield. I will destroy you. I will do the same thing to you that I did to Megan. I will be your murderer. You think I won't? You think you're special compared to her?"

Max flinches. "I…I don't think you intended for it to go that far. You were angry and it clouded your thought. You were in so much pain and you wanted to make her feel the same way. You weren't thinking."

"After it was all over, I bet you regretted it, didn't you? When she moved away, when she killed herself, you must have-"

A slap across the face knocks Max off her feet. Clutching at her burning cheek, she stares up at a furious Victoria. Her entire body is trembling as she barely contains herself and she stares down at Max with hatred.

"I warned you several times already, Max. Don't push me. Even I have limits, so _don't push me_."

The blonde turns and walks into Max's room slamming the door with all her might. Inside, a startled yelp is heard and the sound of shuffling. A minute later, Victoria opens the door and walks down the hall with a new set of clothes and shower supplies.

Max gets back up on her feet rubbing her cheek a little. Leaning against the wall, she sighs exhaustedly wondering if she should have said what she did. It had seemed like they were making such good progress but she may have antagonize Victoria too much. Briefly, she wonders if, in addition to her looks, Megan may have resembled her in more ways than she was led to believe.

A moment later, Chloe steps outside looking around. Spotting her, she walks over, "Was Victoria just here?"

Max swallows. "She went to the shower."

"Christ, what crawled up her ass? She came into the room in a rage slamming doors and shit. She wouldn't answer me when I spoke to her." Max shrugs helplessly unable to explain what occurred. Chloe looks at her then past her shoulders and jumps a bit. " _Holy shit, it's snowing!_ "

Max smiles at her exclamation. They stare out the window at the falling snow for some time in companionable silence. Their attention is only broken at the sound of footsteps. Turning around, they spot Victoria now dressed in a dark blue skirt and cashmere sweater.

She opens the door to Max's room, but stops and throws them a glare. "Shouldn't you be going now, Price? The dorms are going to get active soon and you're not allowed to be here."

Chloe looks as if she was going to argue, but Victoria steps inside before she could. Left without someone to argue with, she chooses to cuss her out instead. "Stuck up bitch." She turns to Max. "I can stay, right, Max?"

She nods. "Of course, Chloe, but, if you do, try to stay out of sight. Your stepdad is the school security guard."

"Yeah, he doesn't ever let me forget it." Chloe mutters. "Where will you be while I'm here?"

Max rolls her eyes. "Classes. I'll bring you some food later on and you should be good to use the bathroom since the dorms is usually empty for the most part during the mid-day."

"What about, uh, you know, the whole Rachel and Nathan thing?"

Max frowns. "I'll talk it over with Victoria to see if we can come up with some kind of plan. Then we'll come discuss it with you." She pauses seeing Chloe looks a little hurt. "Chloe?"

"Why can't you discuss it with me?"

"You're not in class with me, Chloe. Victoria is."

"You can wait until after class, can't you? It would be better anyway. Then you don't have to explain things twice."

Feeling a headache come on, Max says exasperatedly, "Chloe, don't be like this. I'm just using the quickest method possible. If you have any ideas, we'll gladly listen afterwards too. You won't be left out."

"Except I am." Chloe says bitterly kicking the floor a bit. "You keep going to Victoria and taking her side. I know why. It's because I'm all kinds of fucked up and I have nothing, so you go to the girl who's talented and rich. That's bullshit, Max. I have feelings too and you're supposed to be _my_ friend."

Oh, if only Chloe knew. The still stinging sensation on her cheeks reminds Max that she and Victoria are not exactly besties right now.

"I am your friend." Max says irritated. "Hey, who slept by your side last night? Who promised to help you find Rachel? Chloe, we've been with each other since we were kids and that means a lot to me. Y _ou_ mean a lot to me. I'm not going to abandon you, Chloe."

"…liar." Chloe says making Max freeze. "You did that already."

Max lets out an anguished sigh. "I know…and I'm sorry. I didn't want to move away and…and I'm trying to earn your forgiveness. I _know_ it won't be easy to, I know it's not that cheap, but I'm going to try anyway. Let me? Please?"

When she continued shuffling her feet petulantly, Max clenches her teeth feeling all the more harried from the increasing sounds of activity from the other rooms. Glancing around to make sure no one is there, she leans in and pecks Chloe's on the side of her lips.

"There. That's my promise to you."

A strain of guilt went through her. She knew this was a form of manipulation – to convince Chloe to do as she wants underhandedly. She was also testing the water – to see if Victoria's claim of Chloe's attraction to her held any truth. She didn't want to manipulate Chloe at all so much as she wanted to know, but it felt wrong to do something like that when there is still a question of whether she's attracted to Chloe.

Chloe's face lit up in great surprise, then she blushes Chloe blushes heavily trying to hide a bashful smile. A great sense of happiness went through Max at the sight and the guilt strips away and she feels as if she did the right thing.

"O-okay, I'll wait here for you. You're coming back sometime for lunch, right?"

"Right, Chloe. Definitely."

"Right, I'm going now."

Chloe kept stealing glances at Max as she slowly huddles back into the room. When she finally goes in, Max lets out a sigh she is holding. Almost right afterwards, Dana comes out of her room followed by Taylor then Stella. They just dodged a bullet.

Victoria steps out a moment later as immaculately dressed and primped as always. She throws a quick glance around before smiling mockingly. Max braces herself for whatever Victoria is thinking.

"I was listening." Max gives her an annoyed look, but she is unfazed. "That was a good method of mental control, Caulfield. I didn't know you had it in you. Now _that's_ the strength I was talking about."

Each thing she says send a painful sting into Max's heart making her scowl unhappily as she is reminded that what she just did to Chloe isn't right. When she gathers herself, she stares up and whispers back, "Do I remind you of Megan, Victoria?"

The mocking smile flashed into an angry scowl before turning back. "No. She was never good at that kind of thing. That's how I found out she was betraying me. It showed in her face and body." Victoria's half lidded eyes stare her down. "No, that is more like Rachel. She pulled the same shit on me and I'd imagined she did the same to Chloe too. Probably everyone else she was with too."

That hurt even more. She imagines the words she heard ascribed to Rachel – manipulative, bitch, whore – being said of her and it hurt badly. She knows that is not her, though, regardless of what Victoria thinks.

"I'm not like that, Victoria." She says firmly. "Hasn't these past few days shown you that?"

"It hasn't been conclusive yet. One day, you're all over Kate like an overprotective bear. The next, you're using sex appeal to mind control Price. Maybe there's more of you I haven't seen yet."

"I'm a complex individual." Max says looking directly into Victoria's eyes. "I don't think even I know my own depths yet, Victoria. When this is all over, I hope you can think of me with words like 'friend', 'good person', and 'trustworthy'."

Victoria snorts. "Don't count on it. Now go take a shower or we'll be late for class. I'll pick up Kate."

The blonde walks off. Max stares after her without a word. Victoria's words and her own actions run through her mind making her feel a sense of unease with herself.

What a terrible situation. As if this whole Nathan and Rachel issue isn't enough, a growing drama is slowly developing inside the group. In hindsight, it seemed almost inevitable when such a disparate group of people are gathered together, especially when almost every single person has some kind of history with each other.

She hadn't thought of that, though. All she thought was that with their abilities combined, they could conquer. She didn't think their history would come in the way of that even in the face of far greater danger.

Max swallows. Her head still spinning, she steps into her room to prepare for the day.

The sun sways across the sky lazily eventually reaching its summit. Chloe finishes what must have been her third cigarette in the span of only a few hours – it would have been more but she only has four and she has to make it last. She leafs through her phone again trying to keep herself entertained. Every now and then, her eyes flit to the time then at the door.

It is already past noon and she has been desperately hoping Max would come back sometime soon with plenty of food to share as she is feeling lonely and the silence is driving her crazy.

She isn't used to this kind of quiet. Normally, she _has_ to do something to fill her mind. If she's not putting up Rachel posters, she's drinking. If she's not drinking, she's smoking. If she's not doing any of those, then she's unconscious. She can't stand silence with nothing to fill her mind. That's when unwanted thoughts come in; 'unwanted thoughts' being basically everything outside of finding Rachel, drinking, and smoking.

During times like this, her mom's voice would often appear in her mind chiding her for not doing something productive. Telling her to get a job and make money, go to college and learn something, fix up her appearance and look presentable. That kind of shit. During the really bad times, her asshole stepdad's voice would appear and he does nothing but put her down.

If their voices weren't enough, her mind beats her down with reminders of her lack of goals and lack of prospects in life. Basically, her dead end life. It also reminds her of her debt with the local drug dealer Frank and provides plenty of images of what he might do to her if she doesn't pay up. She is positive he wouldn't kill her – Frank isn't a murderer. However, she is sure he wouldn't have any qualms about maiming her.

She doesn't want to think about any of this.

She doesn't want to think about doing something productive because she has no clue what to do. She doesn't want to hear David call her a loser because she already knows she's a loser. She doesn't want to think about Frank because she knows there's no chance she can get the money to pay him back.

Instead, she wishes Max would come back already. They could sit here, eat together, just chat and catch up. Her thoughts are always so quiet and calm when she is around sort of like how it used to be with Rachel. Maybe Max could kiss her again and tell her everything is going to be alright. She wants to hear it so badly.

When there is a knock on the door, Chloe jumps up and rushes over. As she expected and hoped for, Max is there smiling with two plain brown bags in her hand.

"Sorry for the wait, Chloe. The line was a bit long." Max smiles holding up the bags. "I brought us BLT and chips."

"Thank God." She tries to smile as widely as she could. "I'm hungry enough to eat a horse. What are you waiting for? Come in."

She steps back to make room for her. Max looks to the side a bit then steps in leaving the door opened. Chloe frowns a little wondering why. Her question is answered a moment later when Victoria and Kate walks in having been behind Max.

A strain of disappointment goes through Chloe. She had been hoping this would be a lunch shared only between her and Max.

Victoria falls onto the bed sighing. "What a fucking day."

Max hands Chloe a bag, then sits to dig a hand into own bag pulling out a plastic container. She opens to reveal a small BLT on a bed of potato chips. She eats a chip letting out a happy sigh.

"Yeah, crazy." Max says as she chews. "It's not even over yet."

"The hell it isn't. We don't have Mark's class today and I'm not going through that bullshit again. As far as I'm concerned, the day is over."

Chloe scowls hearing that something had happened while she was holed up here. She waits hoping someone – Max, in particular – would elaborate and let her join in on the conversation but when none is forthcoming, she takes the initiative to ask.

"What exactly did happen?"

Max eats a handful more chips. "It was crazy, Chloe. _Everybody_ was staring at us all day long. Taylor and Courtney – those are Victoria's friends – were the first to do so. Then it happened as we walked to the main building, the hallways, and the classroom."

"Every single fucking classroom." Victoria adds.

"Warren didn't even come to talk to me once. I did catch him looking a few times, though."

Still confused, Chloe asks, "Why, though? Why did they stare?"

"It's because we were together." Max says. "We…weren't exactly friends before. Most people who know us would expect us to avoid each other. Even the ones who don't know us know who Victoria does normally hang around with. That's why everyone was so surprised."

Though she wasn't explicit about it, Chloe knew enough about Victoria to get the real reasoning why. She glances at Kate and at Max before turning a glare onto the culprit.

"You fucked with them, didn't you? People wouldn't be so surprised unless they knew you didn't like them. So you must have done shit to them."

If Max's and Kate's glance towards Victoria wasn't confirmation enough by itself, the fact that she responded merely by shrugging her shoulders would have been. Chloe clenches her teeth at the reaction, but she hadn't expected any less.

"We also saw Nathan." Max said which instantly gets her attention. "He looked at us a few times when we passed him in the hallways. He disappeared sometime before noon, though, and we haven't seen him since."

"I didn't really like the attention." Kate says. "But it did make me feel safe. I think there were a few times he wanted to approach but didn't because so many people were paying attention."

"It's exhausting, though." Max says. "I'm just glad to get away from all the staring. A few people even approached me to ask if I was joining the Vortex Club."

Kate nods. "Stella and Alyssa tried to talk to me a few times. They thought I had lost my mind. Only reason I was able to convince them otherwise is because Max was seen with us too."

"Oh, good for you two." Victoria snorts. "Everybody and their fucking mom came up to me. Taylor and Courtney asked about you two all day. Random Vortex guys came up to talk about my new posse and whether they were available." This earns a blush from them. "Even fucking Wells and Price's stepfather came up to me."

Max takes a bite of her BLT. "Principal Wells and David Madsen? Why?"

"Wells talked some bullshit about how he's glad to see me making new friends and that he hopes peace will be maintained at Blackwell. The security guard asked me how I became friends with you two – I told him to fuck off and mind his own business."

Chloe listens to the banter without reaction. Normally, she might have at least chuckled at Victoria's anecdote about her stepfather but her mood has soured too much. Taking out the plastic container Max had gotten for her, she opens it and takes a few chips chewing them slowly.

"Are you two still going to go? Because if not, it's about time we start planning for what's next."

Chloe catches a glance Max sends her way before she responds. "Well, I had thought we'd wait until afternoon but now is a good a time as we're all together. We should plan as soon as possible."

Putting her sandwich down and taking a breath, Max continues, "Alright, we have two things we're supposed to do. The first is to deal with Nathan and the second is to find Rachel Amber, right? Simple enough."

Victoria snorts. "Simple? Both of those are a multi-tier problem. We're dealing with Nathan by helping him but also trying to find out what he did to Kate. As for Amber, she has been missing for months. How the fuck do we even begin the search for her?"

"We could try looking for clues in the places she disappeared." Kate suggests.

Chloe bites her lips, "I tried that already. Most of the clues are with the cops. Any other probably disappeared in the months after her disappearance."

A moment of silence pass in uncertainty as the increasing realization of the enormity of the task ahead of them makes itself known.

Crossly, Victoria says, "How the hell do we even begin this? Where do we start?"

Kate looks at her. "Yesterday, we were going to keep tailing Nathan before, er, Max's retry. Should we try that again?"

Max shakes her head. "I don't think so. From the retry, we ended up discovering nothing, really. Frank said he doesn't sell guns, but it might be possible he sells some kind of rape drug but he was vague on it. Still, it ended up being really dangerous. We need another way."

"Huh, you know that and we didn't even talk to Frank." Victoria murmurs. "That ability of yours could be really useful."

She nods. "It is and that's why I have an idea involving it. See, we could basically do anything and no one would even know. I can search Nathan's room, his car, and even his house, then retry and it would be as if I was never there."

Victoria's face lights up a little at this realization. At Max's side, though, Kate furrows her eyes. "But…in order for this to work, don't you have to _die_ , Max?"

Max swallows. "Yes, it does, but it's worth it. This is, by far, the safest route for all of us."

Kate looks unhappy at this. "Well, I'm not okay with this. This is not good for you." She looks at Victoria and Chloe. "Are you two alright with this?"

Victoria scowls. "She isn't really dying, though. The damn girl is immortal. If she gets shot again, she'll just wake up before anything happens. So she's perfectly safe."

"She is _physically_ safe." Kate persists. "We know, though, that her mind and memories travel back with her. That means that any mental trauma that happens remains with her, doesn't it?"

She looks over, "Max, have you ever had anything like PTSD? Like flashbacks, hallucinations, or anything at all? Even a hint of it."

"No, none at all."

"See? Perfectly fine." Victoria says. "When you can't die, what's there to be afraid of?"

Chloe bites her lips. Her first thought is that while she wouldn't want Max to die, thing is Victoria sounds right in that she isn't really dying. Hearing Max's answer to the question of possible mental effect, it sounded good at first, but something seems off.

Victoria and Kate didn't seem to notice anything, but Chloe had been staring at Max's body while she said it and she noticed a slight stiffening. Plus, the way she spoke then…that's not Max's normal speaking tones. It seemed almost as if she was lying.

That realization makes a buzz appears in the back of Chloe's mind. As if her own head is trying to point something out to her and she isn't getting it.

Max clears her throat, "Kate, I know you're worried, but I want to do this. It's not just for you guys, but for me too. I can't live with myself if you guys get harmed when I could so easily prevent it."

"But Max…"

"At the first sign of trouble, I promise you I'll stop. Victoria, Chloe, and you will all jump in to stop me, no doubt."

Pursing her lips, Kate remains unsure but nods in acquiesce, but Chloe still felt repulsed by the idea. They're talking about Max _dying_ – possibly intentionally – and no one seems too bothered by it.

"We're placing an awful lot of faith in this, aren't we?" Chloe mutters. "I'm still having trouble eating all of this, but you seem so sure that you're willing to risk your life already? Honestly, I'm not comfortable putting Max in danger over something that may not be real."

Max frowns, but Chloe isn't budging on this. If they're going to be playing Batman and going up against dangerous guys, she wants some damn good evidence that they have some sort of protection on their side.

"Well…" Kate murmurs. "it _was_ really convincing how Max kept predicting events."

"Maybe Price has a point." Victoria says nodding a little. "I know we've seen a lot but I wouldn't mind seeing a little more just to be really be sure too. Alright, how about a test that proves it once and for all?"

Chloe looks warily at her. "What kind of test?"

"A simple one – we all write something down and she'll tell us what it is." Victoria pulls a notebook from Max's desk and rips out three pages. "It'll have to be something secret that we would never tell anyone. This ensures that Max didn't learn it from someone else."

Handing a page to Kate then Chloe, she writes something down on her page then folds it. "Alright, done. Now you two do it too."

There is clear hesitation from Kate, but after a moment, she writes something down. Chloe frowns a little unsure if this test should really be the end-all of the whole problem. If Max does get all three correct, it _would_ be incredibly impressive, but…this is her _life_ they're gambling with.

If something should happen to Max, she wouldn't be able to forgive herself.

In the absence of any other ideas, though, and the eyes of everyone on her, Chloe reluctantly thinks of something then writes it down. Truth is that she told Max a lot of things when they were kids and she's positive she also said a lot of things she doesn't even recall anymore over the week, so she probably already knows nearly everything about her.

However, what she wrote down is the kind of stuff she _knows_ she never told Max and that's there utterly no chance she would know. It's the kind of stuff she wouldn't want found out either, so when she finished, she quickly folds the paper and places it in her pocket.

Victoria looks at both. "Finished? Good. We will show our papers to Max later on. We should set a 'save point' here so that if someone happens, Max will come back. Then she will prove her ability by telling us what we wrote down. Agreed?"

Chloe and Max both nods. Kate is the only one who hesitates and she decides to open with her own concerns.

"Guys, there's a bit of a problem…" They look at her. "She restarts from the last time she slept, right? So to create a 'save point' here, she has to go to sleep."

The problem is immediately clear to everyone. Creating a 'save point' as Victoria suggests is impossible simply because Max is fully awake now. Even if she can force a short nap that might work, there's the problem that it can't be done constantly.

Chloe sighs. "Great. Another problem. Do we even know how long she has to sleep before it works? Does it have to be a deep one?"

Victoria shakes her head. "No, the last time this happened, she was asleep for only half an hour in my car."

"It also worked when I fell asleep in Mr. Jefferson's class for a few minutes." Max adds. "So I think any amount of time works so long as I fall asleep."

Kate glances around. "But then…how do we do it? Max just can't force herself asleep constantly."

"Can we just get her drunk?" Chloe murmurs. "Everyone gets sleepy when they're drunk, right?"

"Even if that would work, Price, there's the problem that she'll likely be asleep for hours and then wake up with a hangover making her useless for several more. We don't have that kind of time to spare. We need something that can get her asleep for preferably only a few minutes then wake up clear headed."

"What can possibly do that?" Kate murmurs.

Victoria sighs putting her head in her hands. "I don't know. Fuck."

After a brief silence, a voice nervously speaks. "I…think I know of a way."

Everyone turns to look at Max who is giving an uncertain smile. Chloe looks at her lips a bit and swallows wondering what is going through her head. Her eyes are also a little nervous increasing Chloe's wariness that much more.

She grins uneasily. "If you're thinking of having us choke you out or punch you unconscious, you better think again, Maximus."

"It's not that. It's that…well, I know a guy." Max begins, "He might have something that can simply knock me out. Actually, you guys know him too. Well, at least one of you do." She looks pointedly at Victoria.

Victoria returns the look blankly for a moment, then her eyes widen. "Oh God…you're talking about Frank, aren't you? Frank Bowers the drug dealer?"

"Let me explain!" She raises her hands defensively. "It might sound crazy, but there are drugs that can do that kind of thing, right? We can get some and I'll just take a small dosage. Enough to maybe get me to sleep for an hour at most."

Chloe says tersely. "No. We're not doing that."

" _Chloe!_ "

"No, Max!" She insisted. "All the safest drugs I know will take too long. The ones I know that can knock you out quickly tend to have a lot of nasty side effects. This is stupidly dangerous."

She feels like a hypocrite for saying all of this. After all, she does drugs herself. She does mostly the safe kind, though. The few times she dabbled in the more dangerous stuff, she quickly stopped after a few bad episodes. Other times, she discovers that she liked some stuff too much…and had to fight really hard to stop that too.

She also witnessed what happens to some people who went through a really bad experience or were unable to fight the stuff that felt too good. She saw what happened to them when Frank cut them off because they lost their minds or couldn't afford it any longer.

Max wasn't having it, though. She looks around. "Victoria? Kate?"

Victoria hums to herself thoughtfully. "Well, she's not wrong. You're a complete novice at this and your bodyweight is low. It'll be really easy to give you too much at once. Still, it is a good idea and one that might work."

Chloe glares at Victoria angrily. Kate didn't seem too happy with the words either as she is quickly to jump in.

"I agree with Chloe." Kate says. "This sounds too dangerous. We'll find another way."

"There is no other way, Kate." Max sighs. "If there is, I would definitely take that way first but I simply don't know of any method that can do this kind of thing."

"You could try lying down with your eyes closed. Or, if it doesn't work, we can simply just use the last time you slept even if we lose a lot of hours."

"That would also make proving-" Max points to the folded paper Kate still held. "-more difficult."

"Does it matter?" Kate asks.

"It matters. If we're going to be doing this method, I want all of you to have complete faith in me. So we do this and put to rest the test that this ability of mine is real. After all, we're talking about our lives here."

Chloe bites her lips. "But still, Max…"

"We'll only try a tiny bit of the stuff at first, Chloe. Don't worry – the moment something goes wrong, I have you guys here to watch out for me. _Please_ , guys, trust me on this."

Both Kate and Chloe still seem unwilling, but their silence is taken as acquiescence to the idea. Victoria glances at everyone, then grabs her purse taking her cars keys out.

"Well, while you two are in class, I'll go get it myself."

Max looks at her confused. "Huh? Class?"

"Yes, class. I know I'm cutting the rest of the day, but weren't you and Kate going?"

"No, I'm coming along. Kate, you go."

The response is instant. "Don't be ridiculous. You're about to do something this crazy and I'm going to be left out? No, I'm coming."

Victoria gives a second glance around the room grinning. "Well, that was easy. Alright then, lets go, ladies."

She leaves. They glance at each other uneasily before getting up to follow.

The car ride is tense and silent. Max did make an effort chatting up Kate about their photography project and the kind of photos they might turn in, though the latter just mainly gave small, polite smiles. Both Chloe and Victoria were mostly stonefaced and silent, though Chloe did smile lightly the few times she looks at Max's face.

Chloe knew that this was their way of coping, though she wishes the tension could be relieved just a little. She feels suffocated mainly because Max is about to do something very stupid and she's going to let her. Mainly that…and also because she's intentionally heading towards Frank.

She hasn't forgotten about her debt to him. Not even once. She tries to keep it out of mind through the usual ways – putting up posters, smoking, and drinking – and by avoiding him. The idea of going directly to him especially as he's been more aggressive than usual frightens her.

Her hand inches towards Max a little wanting to touch the other girl for some kind of comfort, but she draws back a moment later. She is afraid of how the others would react, but moreso as to how Max might react.

So she lets it go and the tension eats her up. It lessens a bit when they arrived near the beach where Frank usually stays and Victoria cusses when they all see he is missing. She mutters that they'll try the Two Whales next and departs.

He was there.

Chloe's chest tightens briefly when the car parks a bit away and they get out walking towards his RV. She hangs near the back as Victoria walks up to Frank's vehicle and knocks loudly.

The door opens a moment later and Frank steps out. He stares Victoria down then his eyes wander over the rest of the group lingering piercingly on Chloe who shuffles her feet nervously. Then he lets out a slow chuckle.

"Well, well, two of my favorite customers." He glances at Chloe again. "Well, make that one of my favorite customers. Who are those two with you?"

"None of your damn business, Frank." Victoria bites out.

"Fair enough. So why the fuck are you here? I know you got money, so please tell me you're here to help pay off _her_ debts." He stares pointedly at Chloe who shifts uncomfortably as several eyes fall on her.

"I'm not paying shit for the punk. I want some stuff."

"Oh yeah? What is it this time?"

"You got anything that would help me get to sleep really quickly but only sleep for a short time?"

"What the fuck kind of question is that? I sell party favors, not fucking sleeping pills. Go to the goddamn pharmacy for that."

Victoria clenches her teeth. "No, we need to something that will help me _really_ quickly. Like within minutes or faster. You're saying you don't have anything like that?" Frank hesitates a bit but that was all she needed. "You do, don't you? Cough it up, Bowers, or should I take my money elsewhere?"

"Nobody else in Arcadia sells, dumbass."

"That's what highways are for, _dumbass_." Victoria retorts. "I could be in Portland in an hour and a half. Faster, if I hurry. Before it even gets dark, I would be back in Arcadia with five hundred bucks' worth of stuff."

That gets Frank's interest. "You looking to spend that much?"

"Slow your roll, Frank." Victoria sneers. "My friends in Portland say the stuff that costs that much is supposed to work in a few minutes and I'm getting a good amount of it. You're telling me you got the same?"

Victoria lies with hardly a twitch in her face and it effectively gets Frank to be more open with what he has available. Chloe watches in interest remembering that Rachel used to do the same.

She never could figure out Frank's secretive habits and why he needs to be lied to before he opens up. He's a drug dealer and they're his customers, not the cops. Doesn't he want to sell the drugs? Why does he need to make everything as hard as possible?

"In a few minutes? Bullshit. Nothing works that fast unless you're intending to take a lethal dose. I might have something that can do it in 30."

"I got oxy from you before and that took about 30 minutes. You talking about that?"

Frank shakes his head. "No. You ever heard of GHB?" Victoria raises an eyebrow. "It's sort of like oxy, I guess. It takes about the same amount of time, will knock you out, and you'll probably wake up in about an hour or so. I've been selling some of it, so I guess it works pretty well."

"I'll take it. How much?"

"Thirty a gram."

"Are you fucking kidding me, Bowers? With the amount I'm looking to spend, there will barely be enough for me to get high, nonetheless me and my friends."

"You're not supposed to take that much. Only one or two grams at once. With five hundred bucks, you'll get enough for two doses for each of ya. Now take it or fucking leave it. Or if you're apparently facing bankruptcy, you can buy only a small dose."

Scowling heavily, Victoria bites, "Fine. I'll take it."

Frank goes inside his RV and returns with a clear bag of powder. Victoria takes out five hundred dollar bills and grudgingly slams it in his hands. He takes it without offense and even smirks.

"You are just like Prescott. No wonder you're friends." Frank remarks.

"What?" Victoria asks crossly. "What are you talking about?"

"You're friends with that punk Prescott kid, aren't you? He's buying the same stuff."

Her eyes flit to Kate whose brows seem to furrow in thought. Victoria's lips purses and she doesn't respond, though Frank already lost interest in her. He turns his eyes to Chloe again.

"By the way, I'll be coming to see you sometime. You better have my fucking money or that face of yours will have a nice new scar."

Chloe pales a little and mutters haltingly, "You'll get your damn money, Frank, just calm down."

"You better. I just got a new knife with your name on it. I'll-"

"Shut up! Don't threaten her!" Max shouts stepping in front of Chloe looking livid. "Who the hell do you think you are? Is threatening girls a pastime of yours?"

"That fucking girl owes me three grand, kid." He snarls. "Threatening her is the least I can do. What are you going to do about it? Are you going to pay me back for her?"

"I don't have that kind of money."

"Ain't that a familiar story? She doesn't have money, you don't have money. So if I'm not getting money, then I want a piece of her instead."

Max is unmoved. "If she says she'll pay you back, she'll pay you back. Hurting her isn't going to get you money and you'll only make enemies instead."

Frank raises an eyebrow. "Enemies? You mean… _you_?"

"Yes, me." She says firmly. "I could be the worst enemy you'll ever have."

"Then maybe I should get rid of you now."

Frank had said that with an amused tone, but Chloe nonetheless grabs Max and pulls her behind her back. Victoria also steps up looking displeased, but his amusement didn't slip.

"Enough, Bowers. You may be the only dealer in Arcadia, but don't forget that we're still your source of income. Don't forget I'm one of your biggest sources too. It wouldn't do you any good to antagonize us."

"Don't pull that fucking shit with me." Frank laughs in her face. "I have a hell of a lot of other customers. I'm willing to bet my ability to last without your money is better than your ability to last without my drugs."

Victoria scowls but didn't respond. His smile widens knowing he's right.

"I thought so. I'll let you know that I _will_ get my money and, if I don't, either _you-_ " He looks at Chloe. "or _you-_ " He looks at Max. "will be getting a new face. Now get the fuck out of here."

Frank goes back into his RV and slams the door shut. As soon as he does, Victoria turns around, glares darkly at Chloe, then walks away to her car. Kate glances at her too and follows afterwards. Max it the only one that remains.

An overwhelming feeling of shame and self-loathing overcomes her at the scene caused by her very presence. She closes her eyes as if she could somehow forget all this only to hear David's voice in her mind. He calls her a fuck-up and she agrees with him.

The voice disappears when she feels a pair of hands on her face. Opening her eyes again, she looks into Max's concerned blue eyes. The expression on her face lightens Chloe's heart considerably and she lifts her hand placing it against one of Max's. She gazes as Max licks her lips.

"Chloe…it's alright. We'll get through this together. Don't worry. I got your back. It's okay. I won't abandon you. We'll make it through this. We'll be okay."

Max is just saying whatever comforting words came to her mind without really saying anything. Chloe knew this, but it did make her feel so much better. The more she heard, the more she wanted to hear. Max's soft voice filters into her ears and worked like a cool soothing balm to her cracked heart.

It reminds her of those wonderful times when Rachel did the same. She would whisper sweet nothings into Chloe's ears in a silky voice and just listening to the rhythm of it would lull her to sleep. When Rachel disappeared, she had missed that more than anything.

She wanted to remain like that until, somehow or another, things really were fine again. A loud honk from behind makes both she and Max jump a bit interrupting the moment. She turns around to see angry Victoria looking out her car window and honking her horns again.

"Chloe, I think we should head back."

She didn't want to. As far as she was concerned, Victoria can drive off and leave them there. They could go into the Two Whales and sit there together until Joyce gets off to give them a ride. Then they can go back to her house and just stay there. Forget Blackwell. Forget Nathan. Forget everything else.

When Max tugs lightly on her hand to come along, though, she didn't resist and is led back to the car where she sits in the back besides Kate.

The drive back to Blackwell is more intense. She isn't sure how much of the tension came from the upcoming plan to dose Max and how much is from the confrontation with Frank. The sense of self-consciousness and utter piteousness never left her. Max's need to comfort her also created more shame which, in turn, makes her wish she could have more. All this in a cycle of pity and shame that repeats itself.

But that's who she is. She's all too aware of that.

"That was fucking stupid. I knew you were an idiot, but fucking Christ." Victoria bites out.

Of course Victoria is the first to break the tense silence and to do so by insulting somebody. Chloe swallows a bit and accepts the insult not having the energy or willingness to fight it. She was almost tempted to apologize, but she still has some pride and she holds on to whatever bit she has fiercely.

"Fuck off, Victor." She replies automatically and without emotion.

"Not _you_ , dumbass." Victoria bites. "I'm talking to fucking Max."

A confused pause. "Wait, me? What did I do?"

"What kind of fucking question is that? You yelled at that fucking idiot, Bowers. You threaten him. It sounds like you're now his target too. You heard him. Either he gets his money or he'll give you or that punk a fucking slashed face. Possibly both."

"I…I thought he might hurt Chloe. I couldn't just stand by."

"He was only threatening the moron. He wasn't going to hurt her. You jumping in has made things worse, not better. Now he's going to attack you too."

Max flinches a bit. Chloe quickly jumps in to defend her actions.

"She was only doing what she thought was right. Besides, I would not have let Frank hurt her."

"You've been doing a real good job of that yourself."

"I'm still alive, aren't I? Still in one piece."

She snorts. "Some piece. Real nice job."

Chloe burns with anger, but didn't respond. The rest of the ride continues in silence. Even when they reached Blackwell, the walk back to the dorms was in complete silence. A few people who waved at them as they passed got ignored.

As soon as they step back into Max's room, Victoria takes the GHB out and tosses her purse onto the couch.

Sighing, she hands the bag of powder to Chloe. "Price, start the process. You're competent enough to do that, right? I'm going to the bathroom to freshen up. Try not to fuck this up too."

"Right. Be a bitch even when you ask me to do something." Chloe snaps at her as she leaves. Victoria didn't respond.

Chloe goes to the desk and sits down examining the bag. Kate goes up looking over her shoulder.

"Huh, what am I suppose to do?"

Kate says quietly, "I think we should start by measuring it out. We're supposed to use only a small bit, right?"

"Right, right. I think…half a gram. That's right."

"Hey, guys." Max calls. "I'm going to go take a break outside too, alright? Prep myself to do this."

Chloe looks at her in concern. "Max, if you don't want to, we won't."

"No, I want to. It is my idea. I just…need some time to prepare myself. I'll be back soon."

She leaves as Chloe and Kate watches. Afterwards, they glance at each other then got back to trying to prepare the drug. Chloe tries to take away her mind from Max and Frank and focus entirely on this mixture knowing how important it is to get it right.

"Now we have to mix this with something. I think people usually use soda."

"I think…" Kate whispers. "…wine or juice is a possibility too."

"Right. Damn, I'll have to go get some."

"Will tea do? I have some in my room."

"I guess that sounds good. Here, I'll get it. I don't want to be cooped up too long anyway."

"My room is 222. Get the zesty lemon too as Max likes that."

"Gotcha."

In the hallway, there were noise of conversation, music, and movies coming from several rooms. Chloe walks hesitantly down the hallway looking for Kate's room. She freezes just in front of it when a few girls come out of their room. They glance at Choe curiously, but ignore her afterwards heading off to another person's room.

Sighing in relief, Chloe goes into Kate's room, spots the shelf with tea boxes, and grabs two zesty lemon bags before leaving. Then she heads towards the exit.

The real reason she wanted to leave was to find Max. She already had an excuse handy of they're being done and need her back so as to not look like she was just uncomfortable without her around. When she steps outside, though, she pauses not seeing Max anywhere.

Confused, Chloe runs back and goes to check inside the bathroom. There was one other girl in there, but not who she wanted. Not knowing where else to go, she checks the shower too but there is no one in there. Thoroughly concerned, she gets the idea to check the rooftop.

As she passes Max's room, she pauses on hearing some voices. It sounded like Max and Victoria. Problem is that it wasn't coming from Max's room, but…across it? She tiptoes slowly to the door numbered 221. Racking her mind from when she first came here and looked at the map, she recalls that 221 is Victoria's room. What the hell is Max and Victoria doing in her room?

Another girl comes out of her room scaring Chloe a bit. Biting her lips, she leans against the wall near Victoria's room and takes out her phone making it appear as if she's just busy texting. Near to the room now, the voices come through more clearly.

" _-yelling at me? Nothing happened. I told you it's not that big a deal."_

" _And I asked if you want to wait until something happens before you smarten up? Stop trying to fight me. We're talking about your safety." A huff. "I don't understand why you want to throw your life away for that fucking moron. If she wants to borrow money from that idiot, Frank, and get cut up for it, let her. You're not involved."_

" _I am involved. She's my friend. My best friend."_

Warmth spreads through Chloe at that. To hear someone defend her unceasingly and to know that someone is Max feels incredible. She snickers internally at how Victoria must feel. Pissed off as usual but also dumbfounded because no one must feel that way about her.

" _That's the stupidest fucking reason I've ever heard."_

" _It's not. If you were in my position and Chloe was Megan, wouldn't you-"_

" _First off, I killed her, remember? So no, I wouldn't. Secondly, I warned you about bringing her up, didn't I?"_

Chloe starts. What the hell is Victoria talking about? She didn't mean 'kill' literally, did she? And who is Megan?

"… _sorry. I'm just trying to get you to see my point of view. You don't like me and wouldn't see it my way otherwise. I'm just trying to say I care about Chloe and I'm willing to risk it for her."_

A groan. _"I don't dislike you, Max. In fact, I do like you. More now than I ever did before. Why the hell do you think I'm here chewing you out? Because I don't want to see you get hurt."_

" _Why don't you ever show it then? You're always so angry."_

" _It's not easy, okay? I told you a bit of my history. I have every right to be pissed as hell because I know it's the right way to be and, before this is all over, you'll see it from my view."_

" _I think it is easy. I…I know things haven't always been good for you, but that doesn't mean everyone is out to get you, Victoria. I told you before that I don't hate you. It's the opposite – I love you. You're one of my friends."_

" _I also warned you about that. Stop it. I don't want to hear you say that anymore."_

" _I just-"_

The voices slowly tune out as Chloe's mind buzzes loudly. Those three words…how could she? How could Max say it to fucking _Victoria_?

She knew Max meant as a friend – she even outright said so. All the logic in the world tells her she doesn't need to get so worked up over this. Emotions aren't logical, though. They don't work that way.

Instead, her heart aches hearing it and the words seem to repeat endlessly in her mind. Has Max ever said the words to her? She can't recall. She doesn't think so. It burns her. She tries her damndest to fight back against the swelling mount of hurt. She reminds herself that Victoria has never been kissed by Max. Never embraced her like she did. Never shared deeply intimate moments.

…but then her mind works against her. It tells her she doesn't know that. It suggests to her that they may have done so much more.

Without consciously doing it, Chloe slams a fist against the wall. The burst of pain in her hand deadens the thoughts and brings some relief. She only realizes her mistake when she noticed the voices in Victoria's room had stopped.

She quickly pushes herself off the wall and moves into Max's room. Inside, she walks over to the desk and sits staring unfocused. Feeling a pair of eyes on her, she turns to see Kate staring at her in confusion.

"Chloe?"

"W-what?"

"Did you get the tea?"

"The tea?...oh!" She pulls the bags out of her pocket. "This it, right?"

"Right." Kate's eyes become annoyed. "Oh darn. I forgot to tell you to get the kettle too."

"Kettle? Damn. Sorry, I'll go-"

"No, I'll do it." Kate insists. "You…I think you need to rest. You look a little upset."

She takes the teabags and leaves the room. Chloe sits there alone sighing at the idiocy of forgetting the fucking tea kettle. She feels like she might burst from everything inside of her.

It's been a long time since she's been this much of an emotional wreck. It's been a long time since she went without some kind of distraction. All day, she didn't even have a single beer. Add to having to see Frank and innumerable images of Max floating in her mind.

"Christ. I really am broken."

She slumps hearing the whispered words which she long knew already. Some time later, the door opens and she hears the voices of Victoria and Max. She glances at them and the hurt that's been sitting inside her turns into something easier to handle. Anger.

She wanted to get up and scream at them both. Victoria for constantly talking shit about her, for what happened with Rachel, for having Max said 'I love you' to her. Max for not seeming to want her as much she wants Max, for being so friendly with Victoria, for not comforting her right now.

She tries her hardest to hold it in, though. Max sits on the bed and Victoria sits besides her – Chloe sees this and still keeps her mouth shut, though it required her to clench her teeth. Kate arrives a little later carrying a cup of steaming tea and a plastic spoon.

"Alright, are we ready?" She asks.

"Lets get on with it." Victoria says.

"Ready." Chloe mutters.

Max sighs. "Alright, lets do it."

Kate places the cup of tea down on the table. "Okay, we just need to add the drug in."

"You guys did only do a small amount, right?" Victoria asks. "Not too much?"

"Yes, only half a gram."

"Alright, good. Do it."

Chloe adds in the powder with the spoon Kate brought and mixes it in slowly. Afterwards, she places the spoon down and Max reaches out to take it. She stares at it, sighs, then mutters a 'bottoms up' and gulps the entire thing down.

Everyone stills waiting for some kind of reaction. Ten minutes passes, fifteen minutes. At a little over twenty minutes, Max begins swaying and her eyes flit back and forth.

"This...this actually feels kind of nice."

Victoria raises an eyebrow. "Good. If it's like any other I've taken, it'll get better. If it doesn't…well, we're here."

Max didn't respond. She appears as if she stopped listening or, possibly stopped hearing. A relaxed smile comes over her face as her cheeks reddened. She begins swaying in place.

Victoria reaches out to steady her, but Chloe quickly intercepts walking in-between them knocking her hand away.

"I'll do it."

She ignores Victoria's glare and wraps her arms around Max as the latter slowly tilts backwards. When she begins to go limp, Chloe slowly lowers her onto the bed. They all stare at her as her eyes lose focus, but don't close. Her eyes roll back and forth. The smile has fallen off and she becomes still.

Kate looks at this in concern. "Is this normal?

Chloe bites her lips. "She doesn't seem to be in pain. She's also responding a little bit." She waves a finger in front of Max and her eyes follow lazily. "What about you, Victor? Seen anything like this?"

"No…well…not personally."

There was a noticeable hesitation in her voice making Chloe and Kate looks over. Victoria's face is blank but there is still a noticeable tension in her shoulders. When she catches sight of their eyes, she stares back.

"What?" She mutters harshly, though her voice lacks its usual bite. "What is it?"

Kate says, "Victoria, is something wrong?"

"No."

"If Max might be in danger, you should tell us." Chloe says gruffly. "We don't want to have to do a mad rush to the hospital."

"It's not that."

Chloe persists. "She is new at this, so if you don't-"

"I said it's not that! It's not Max, it's just…it looks a little like Kate…"

Dead silence.

"Like…me?" Kate says unsteadily. "What are you talking about?"

Victoria swallows. "It's just…well, it looks sort of like…Max's face, it looks sort of like yours. From the club party. Right?"

"I…I don't know. I don't remember it. Is that what I looked like?"

"I'm pretty sure. You kind of weren't responsive and you just sort of walked around in a daze, but every now and then, you had a goofy smile on your face."

Kate looks up at Victoria. "You noticed all of that? Victoria, why didn't you help me?"

Victoria grimaces then scowls, "Why was it my job to help you? You shouldn't have drank at the party or, hell, even went. A novice like you had no place being there." Kate turns away looking disappointed. " _I didn't know!_ How the fuck could I have known? You looked nearly the same as everyone else at the time and I was drunk too!"

Averting her eyes, Kate asks, "I can understand that. I can understand all that, but…but did you have to take that video too? Do you understand what it did to me?"

"Yeah, you and Max told me all about it." Victoria says bitterly. "So everything is my fucking fault? I can't do shit right, huh?"

"Actions have consequences, Victoria." Kate says bitter too. "You just never had friends who were negatively affected by your actions before us."

Chloe looks between the two of them steadily realizing that Victoria may have as much history with Kate as she does with her and Rachel. Unlike with them, though, it seems her actions now are coming back to bite her in the ass. Unable to help herself, she chuckles.

Victoria reacts immediately. "What the fuck is so funny, Price?"

"What else? You, Victor. I'm just glad to see I'm not the only fuck-up around."

"First off, don't fucking call me Victor." Her eyes narrow angrily. "Secondly, we're nothing alike, Price. I'm still rich, beautiful, and have plenty of friends. You're poor as fucking dirt, damaged as a hobo with a lobotomy, and you're alone."

A sting. That had hurt.

"Your _parents_ are rich, not you. You are one of those trust fund brat types. As for friends, you don't have friends. You have brown nosing suck-ups because of your money. They don't like you and they will stab you in the back if your money ever runs out."

Victoria's face pales and her eyes widen. Then her face twists into fury. Seeing this, Kate tries to placate the both of them, but they ignore her. Knowing she had hit a soft spot, Chloe continues.

"The only real friends you have and ever had were the ones you stole from me. My friends are real friends."

" _Friends_? Plural? You have _one_ friend, Price. You might have had two but the other one fucked off somewhere. How did you find Max? Did she find you prostituting yourself for money somewhere and felt pity?"

"Fuck you!" Chloe says standing up. "You're just pissed that you don't have anyone like that. Or maybe you did and she left because she couldn't stand being around you anymore."

Victoria's shoulders begin trembling and her breaths come out in short gasps. "You think Max is going to stay around forever? Unlike you, she doesn't cling onto others like a bad sore." An angry sneer comes on. "That's why Rachel disappeared. She left you. She couldn't fucking stand you anymore. I bet she went off somewhere and killed herself because you made her so miserable, didn't you?"

Chloe's clenches her fists. She thinks of how often Max needs to comfort her, how she hangs onto her so frequently. She…she actually did do a lot of the same things with Rachel.

She refuses to believe Rachel disappeared because of her, though. She refuses to believe Max will do the same.

"Victoria, I'm going to beat the shit out of you."

"You touch me and I'll send you to where you should have been from the beginning: Prison." Victoria says. "I'll gather up my fucking brown nosing suck-ups, have them beat the shit out of you, then send your fucking ass to prison. You can hang out with all the dykes in there."

"Guys, I think Max isn't breathing."

The argument stops instantly and they snap their head over to where Kate is looking down at an unconscious Max. Chloe freezes feeling her heart stop as she stares down at Max's unmoving face. Victoria jumps over and checks her pulse then she leans down near her lips.

"She's breathing. Just very slowly and weakly." Victoria says.

Chloe lets out breath she hadn't realize she's been holding. "Thank God."

"How long will this take?" Kate asks. "She is asleep, right?"

"Yeah, definitely." Chloe says checking Max's eyes. "She's out like a light. It's kind of creepy. Max actually snores a little, but now she's just sort of…lying there."

Victoria remarks, "Frank says an hour, but we'll just have to wait and see." She turns to Chloe and stares silently a moment, then sigh. "Look, Price, I'm a nervous wreck as it is doing this. Lets…lets try not to argue for now, alright?"

Chloe scowls. She didn't want to let this go. She wanted to yell at Victoria more, tell her to stay away from Max, or just plain beat her black and blue, but then she glances at Max again and swallows thinking she didn't want to pull her attention away either.

So she nods in agreement. The two turns away from each other and Kate breathes easier knowing that a potentially big fight has been averted. She turns her attention away too and they all proceed to wait patiently. Soon, cell phones come out to relieve the boredom.

Chloe, being the one to sneak peeks the most, is the first to notice when Max's eyes is opened and her hands are moving a little.

"She's awake! Max's awake!"

She nearly runs over and gently lifts Max up by the shoulders. Victoria and Kate crowd around too watching silently.

Max stares from person to person then around the room as if trying to find out where she is and her eyes clear up little by little. When she looks more settled, Victoria leans in.

"How do you feel?" Victoria asks.

Max looks at her blankly, then her eyes light with understanding, "…confused. Ugh, horrible."

"Do you remember anything?"

Her face scrounges. "A little. It's…coming back in bits and pieces, but it's all out of order. I just remember something about eating pancakes; that was at your house, right, Chloe?" Seeing her nod, she continues. "But then I remember something about a test that happened two weeks ago. A lot of things are still really fuzzy."

They stare at each contemplatively not knowing what to think of this. Max, in turns, looks at each of them.

"How long was I out?"

Chloe says, "An hour and a half."

"Not bad." Max mutters. "This wasn't as bad as I thought it would be."

Victoria looks around. "I think this is a good time to show her the papers." She takes out her paper. "Here, look at mine. _Don't_ say anything about it out loud."

Chloe and Kate moves back a bit to give some sense of privacy. Max takes the paper, looks at it curiously, then slowly unfolds it. She blinks a few times, then looks up at Victoria who gives her a pointed look before taking back the paper and walking away.

"Your turn, Price."

Chloe scowls, but takes out her folded paper. It is, of course, at that point that she started having second thoughts about giving it to Max. When she wrote it down, she wanted to write something down that she was 100% sure the brunette would not know. Problem is that this is _Max Caulfield_. They had done _everything_ together.

She had her first sleepover ever with Max and it would be the first of many, many more. They had their first drink together. They used to read comic books together in each others' room. Chloe was there when Max took her first instant film photo and fell in love with it so much that she decided she wanted to become a photographer. They…shared their first kiss with each other in a stupid experimentation phase in a cave in some forest of Arcadia Bay.

Feeling eyes on her and seeing Max gazing at her with patient eyes, she swallows and holds out the folded paper to her. She takes the folded paper slowly and opens it as Chloe waits nervously.

She did not know how much of what they did that Max remembers. Hell, she is positive there is a ton of things she herself forgot. She had figured the only way to be sure was to write something down that had happened after Max left home and involving something that she couldn't easily see or guess.

So she decided to write down about how she has a piercing on her left pussy lip.

When Max's cheeks turns a dark red and she giggles looking up at Chloe, she feels significantly relieved that the other isn't disgusted or offended. She catches a suspicious look from Victoria and a confused Kate, but she ignores them wanting to keep this secret between her and Max to herself. When Max hands the paper back, she quickly puts it back in her pocket.

Without prompt, Kate takes out hers. She hesitate a little looking unsure before holding out the paper. Max unfolds it and reads. A moment later, her eyes turned into saucers and she snaps her head up staring in shock at Kate who is looking away blushing so much her face looks like a tomato. When Max gives back her paper, she quickly hides it too.

Chloe stares at this wondering if this burning feeling of curiosity is how the other felt when Max read her own paper.

"That should be it." Victoria murmurs. "If something happens, Max can tell us the contents of those paper proving definitively all of this is real."

"But until then-" Chloe stresses. "-we keep it safe." Victoria nods in agreement.

"It's weird, though." Kate says. "Doesn't the fact that Max hadn't told us already mean nothing had happened?"

Victoria scowls. "I've been thinking the same thing."

"What?" Chloe asks confused. "What are you two talking about?"

"I mean…" Kate begins. "We just set the save point, right? If something had happened and Max had to…'retry', then we wouldn't have had to go through that ritual just now. She would have stopped us and told us what was in it, right? Because we had already shown it to her before the retry…where she first learned…"

Kate trails off slowly confusing herself, but Chloe had already gotten the point. Victoria clucks her tongue in annoyance.

"We really don't have time to debate and discuss the physics of time travel, reincarnation, or whatever this is." Victoria says. "We already wasted a lot of time just finding a way to create a save point."

"You're right." Kate nods. "So what do we do now?"

Max sits up straighter. "Nathan. We now know there might be a real possibility of what he did to you, so we should somehow get information on him."

Chloe listens in disappointment. She had been really hoping they would try to find information on Rachel first. Nathan will always be around, but Rachel has been missing for months.

"Wait a minute, what about Rachel?"

"This will help you too." Victoria interrupts. "There's a link between Rachel and Nathan too."

Chloe freezes in surprise. She quickly looks at Max and Kate but they both seem equally confused. She turns back to Victoria who suddenly clams up when she glances at each of their faces.

"What link are you talking about?" When Victoria remains silent, she turns around. "Max, do you know of this? What is she talking about?"

"I don't know, Chloe. What link are you talking about, Victoria?"

Victoria purses her lips deliberating, then a resigned look comes over her. "Max, you and Kate know part of the story already. Remember how I said what happened to Kate sounds similar to what I hear from another girl before? Well, that girl was Rachel."

Chloe pales. What happened to Kate? But wasn't she…?

She tries to sound calm. "Please tell me it's not what I think it is. As far as I've gathered, Kate had been raped by your prick boytoy. Are you saying the same happened to Rachel?"

Kate swallows uncomfortably at the description.

Victoria looks annoyed. "It is exactly what it sounds like, Price."

Max hurriedly adds, "Hold up, Victoria, we don't know for sure whether Kate had been…attacked. We just know she's been drugged. That's all you know of Rachel too."

"I also know both Kate and Rachel left with Nate after the party."

"Which doesn't mean something actually happened." Max insists. "Until we confirm it, we shouldn't jump to conclusions. Besides, you said it yourself – Nathan isn't a rapist, right?"

Victoria purses her lips. "You're right, Max. I am thinking too much. It's just…everything sounds so damn bad."

"It does, but we still have hope, Victoria. Don't lose it."

"You're…you're right. Uh, thanks."

Victoria smiles uncertainly as if unused to thanking someone, but the attempt was enough to get her a return smile from Max. Chloe sees this and her mind is temporarily taken off the situation as she stares at them both and the memories of what she hears in Victoria's room returns.

This time, any sense of hurt is overwhelmed by a rising tide of anger.

"We never did hear the full story." Kate hesitantly begins. "What exactly did happen with Rachel?"

Victoria makes a face as if remembering the event then she scowls.

"It happened before her disappearance. I don't know if it was actually that night, but it was the last time I saw her." She clears her throat. "We were at a Vortex party and, out of the corner of my eyes, I saw her stumbling around. I thought she was just drunk, high, or both. I had came up to her to do my usual thing – fuck with her because she pisses me off, but she acted…strangely."

"She immediately tried to kiss me and I had to block her off. Then she started talking gibberish. I don't mean that metaphorically, by the way." She says blandly. "I mean she was literally talking gibberish. Like a different language or something. She kept looking at me with exasperation too …as if she thought she was talking normally and I just can't understand."

"The only reason I knew what the hell was going on at all is that she would occasionally say some something in actual English. She said things like 'feel good', 'feel sick', or 'really fun'. Short phrases like that. She would also use her arms to gesture wildly. This is actually normal for Rachel, but this time, it looked as if one of her arms was deadweight and she was using her shoulders to simply flop it around."

"I was weirded out by all of this, but I did my usual thing of laughing at her and throwing it in her face." Victoria snickers though it sounds forced. "She got frustrated and just walked off. A little later, I saw her leaving with Nathan. I didn't think much of it because they were friends as much as it pisses me off to say."

"Then, a few weeks later, I heard Rachel had disappeared."

Victoria's story ends in an unsatisfying note. Her eyes are emotionless and her mouth is tight as she stares at all of them as if awaiting judgment on her actions.

"So that makes two people you've fucked now, right?"

Chloe's mocking voice catches all their attention. Victoria turns her eyes remaining silent, though her shoulders tense. Max's eyes widen and she looks at Chloe in warning as if trying to stop her from continuing. She ignores her, of course.

"Kate and Rachel." Chloe elaborates. "Two people. Two genuinely good people, unlike _you_."

Victoria eyes alight. There's the infamous Chase wrath. "Genuinely good people? Rachel Amber? Arcadia Bay's favorite whore? You are too kind, Price."

"She was your best friend too." Confusion comes over Victoria. "Yes, I knew that. She told me how you two used to do everything together. Then you got fucking jealous because she was hanging around with me instead and lost your mind. So yeah, you fucked your best friend too."

There is a moment of silence, then a mocking smile comes on Victoria's face. "You…don't know. My God, you don't know. Fuck, she never told you."

That smile infuriates Chloe. She realized something is wrong right off, but she didn't know what. What had Rachel never told her? Victoria is speaking as if there is something funny about her calling them friends. What did she mean?

Then there's Max. She had sneaked a look at Max's face and there's something in her face that tells Chloe she is surprised too. That means she knows something. Another secret between her and Victoria. Another secret Max kept from her.

It makes her furious.

"What's so funny, Victor?" Chloe bites bitterly. "Or does the idea that Rachel disappeared amuse you that much? I shouldn't be surprised. People dying is nothing to you. How does it feel? Does it feel like you've killed her yourself? Would that even bother you?"

There. Something happened. At her words, all humor left Victoria's face and she pales a little. Anger replaces it afterwards as she remains silent, but Chloe knows what she saw and she quickly attaches on not wanting to look like an ignorant idiot anymore.

"Maybe it's just your awesome personality. People around you just sort of gets screwed over, isn't it?" Chloe watches carefully, but Victoria doesn't react. She tries something else. "Do they always just get raped or do they die too?"

Kate squirms uncomfortably and Max's eyes harshly looks at Chloe trying to warn her more, but she plows forward. She just saw Victoria flinch a little.

"If things like this happen to people who are your classmates and people who are your friends, what happens to those genuinely close to you? Your parents – are they happy or miserable?"

"Fuck you, Price! Don't-"

Chloe ignores her outburst. "What about your lovers? Are they still alive?" Victoria sucks in her breath and she knows she got her. "Your lovers died in the past, haven't they? All of them?"

Max stands up. "Chloe, stop this now! Stop it!"

She is ignored again. "Did they die with enough pain to make you satisfied? Or did they die before you got the knife in deep enough?"

She's losing the fight again. Victoria is barely containing her anger, but she's doing it. Furthermore, Max is trying to stop the fight. Chloe wants to make her lose it before they are stopped, though.

Something occurs to her. She remembers what Max and Victoria said before in the other room. A name.

Staring at Victoria intently, Chloe says, "Was Megan's death satisfying for you?"

That did it. In that brief moment after she said that, Chloe saw it all. Max stops right away as her eyes widen dramatically. Meanwhile, Victoria seemed to have stopped breathing.

Then she revives and promptly slams her smartphone on Chloe's head.

" _Fuck you!"_

Chloe falls over as her head rings with pain but before she could even catch her breath, Victoria is on her. Not even aware enough to know where to hit, Chloe nonetheless throws punches feeling some of them land on Victoria's body.

Something hits her face making her reel so hard that the back of her head hits the floor. In-between the pain, confusion, and shouting, panic blooms inside of her sending her into a frenzy of randomly thrown hits. Some of them begin to land and she even feels the body on top of her get lighter.

When she feels a pair of hands grab one of her arms, she immediately punches in that direction feeling the hit land and a shout of pain.

"Max! Your nose!"

Chloe freezes realizing what she had done only to have Victoria grab her head and slam it into the floor. She goes slack feeling like the room is spinning. She thought Victoria would have continued her assault, but she feels Victoria getting off.

"Fuck this!"

"Victoria!" Kate calls. "Where are you going?"

"Out for a cigarette. I'll be back. Don't fucking bother me." The slamming of the door sounded out a moment later.

"Max? Are you alright?"

Shaking off her dizziness, Chloe pushes herself off the ground and turns to look at Max. The latter is crouching on the ground coughing a bit and there is blood around her nose. Kate is besides her patting her back.

"I'm okay, Kate. Don't worry." Her eyes flit over and stare directly into Chloe's who flinches. She gets up coughing a bit more. "Chloe, can I see you in the shower, please?"

Max walks out without another word. Feeling miserable, stupid, and a complete fuck-up all at once, Chloe sits there a moment breathing lightly. She can feel Kate's eyes flit to her every now and then, but she didn't feel like she could meet them.

Heaving a sigh, she gets off the floor and trudges through the door. When she gets into the shower, Max is there washing her face and checking her nose. Chloe leans against the wall waiting for judgment to come down on her. Not that she didn't know exactly what that judgment would be, but it's always so much worse to hear it than think it.

When Max looks up at her, though, and didn't say anything, she shifts uncomfortably feeling like her personal value was lessening with each second.

"I think…you already know you did a bad thing." Max begins. "So I just want an explanation. What happened in there? Why did you suddenly lose your cool?"

Chloe swallows. "I just hated Victoria. You know that, Max."

"That wasn't why that happened, though. Try again."

Her head burns with shame. "Why do I have to get the third degree? Why can't Victoria-"

"Victoria isn't here, Chloe. We are. You and I." Max says. "I'm trying to help you here, Chloe. I want to do nothing but make things better for you. For all of us. Why are you fighting me?"

A lump gets caught in her throat and she finds herself unable to respond to Max or even look her in the eyes. Memories of the conversation between Max and Victoria come back to her and cause her heart to rollercoaster. She wanted to ask about that. She wanted to know why Max can say 'I love you' to Victoria, but not her. She wanted to know why the two of them share so many secrets.

"Chloe." Max's voice trembles slightly. "How did you know about Megan?"

Silence.

" _Chloe._ "

She swallows. "It was a lucky guess."

"A lucky guess. You managed to get that in a lucky guess?"

"Well…not entirely a guess. I guess right that bringing up whoever Megan is would rile up Victoria, that's all."

"But how did you learn about her?"

"I…heard you guys talking. Inside Victoria's room."

Max's eyes widen a little. "That loud thump we heard. It was you."

"Right. I heard you guys talking about this Megan. I didn't understand it entirely, but I got the idea that Victoria may have done some damage to this girl, so I used it."

"Why?"

Chloe presses her lips tightly. "Because I wanted to hurt her, of course."

Max inhales deeply. "Chloe, we are all in this together. Please do not bring up Megan anymore – it's a very sensitive subject for Victoria."

"Even though she apparently killed this girl?"

"She…it's complex. I don't understand it very clearly myself, but I think Victoria does feel some sort of guilt over this even if she'll yell up and down that she doesn't. The important thing is that we can't antagonize each other if we are to be a team. And we are one."

"Right. Sorry."

"Good. Lets go back and-"

"Do you love me?" Max falls silent and looks over at Chloe questioningly. "Do you love me?"

"Yes, absolutely."

"Then why have you never said it to me? How the hell does Victoria get to hear it but not me?"

Max opens her mouth and closes it. Her eyes furrow as if unsure how to respond. Chloe glares hard at her growing angrier as she believes she has caught Max in her hypocrisy now.

"That kiss you gave me. That was a lie, wasn't it?"

More silence.

"Damn you, Max Caulfield! Everything you've been saying to me was a lie, wasn't it?"

"It…it wasn't a lie, Chloe. I really do love and care for you. You are my best friend."

"What is Victoria to you?"

"A friend."

"Do you say the things you do to all your friends? Do you do the things you do for all of them?"

"N-no! It's not like that!"

"Am I just another one then? Did you kiss Victoria too? Kate?"

"No! You're the only one!"

"Are you lying to me right now, Max?"

"I'm not." Max clutches Chloe's hand. "You have to believe me."

"Why should I?"

"Because I love you."

Chloe lets out a bitter laugh. Only regretting it a little when Max's eyes show hurt. When Chloe's laughter dies down and they both stare at each other in silence, the strangest feeling passes through her.

She stares at the deflated Max with lines of wrinkles over her face looking somehow much older than she had this morning. The bits of blood still visible inside her nose where Chloe accidentally hit her.

At that moment, she felt an overwhelming sense of desire for this girl in front of her and hated herself for it. She hated herself for falling into this trap again even as she already sees the holes in it. The same holes that existed when Rachel was around and the same holes that exists now, but she couldn't help herself.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

Chloe's voice is resigned and Max didn't say anything at first.

"It's okay, Chloe. We'll be alright. I promise you it'll be better."

Max sounds as if she was trying to convince herself more than Chloe, but she liked hearing it anyway. She hated her own weakness that much more.

"I don't know if it'll be okay, Max."

"It will be. We have to believe. We don't have any other choice."

Max lightly takes hold of Chloe's hand and leads her out of the shower. Back into the room, Victoria has already returned. She glares darkly at Chloe when she comes back in, but doesn't say anything.

"Guys, I have an idea on what to do next." Max says. "It might be our biggest step."

"Yes?" Kate prods. "What is it?"

"I think we can all agree right now that Nathan is our biggest lead, right? So it's best if we get information on him. I think it's time to get something of real substance and the best way I know of to do that is to go into his dorm."

"Now here's my idea: You guys will be on lookout and I'll go in alone. When-"

"Hold up." Victoria stops her. "Alone? You'll definitely need one of us."

"It should be easy, though. I just need to be careful."

"You have a lot of experience breaking into people's dorms, Max? You're also clumsy as fuck. I have enough on my plate as it is, so I don't need to be dragged into saving your ass from Wells either. Take one of us with you."

Max scowls. "Alright, but only one of you. Anyway, when we break in, we'll do a search for as much as possible, then get out when we are clear. You guys on the outside will keep in contact to ensure Nathan doesn't reappear."

Kate nods. "Sounds simple."

"Which gives me a bad feeling." Victoria mutters."

"It'll work." Max insists. "Alright, lets do this."


	7. Chapter 07

**Chapter 07**

Blackwell security is as lacking as ever.

It felt strange to Chloe to think that. Knowing her stepfather – one of the most zealous security guards she can think of – works here, Blackwell should be ridiculously secured. However, Chloe and Rachel always had little problems flouting the rules, and the Vortex Club is notorious for illicit substances.

Today? They had little to no issue getting into the boys' dorm. Max, being who she is, snuck cautiously around and always looked everywhere several times before moving forward, but it was completely unneeded.

As it turns out, the students that haven't gone out are locked inside their rooms playing games or whatever. Even the walk up to the dorms was surprisingly clear once they dodged around Samuel who was tending to the landscape.

Max peeks around the corner making sure the coast is clear. Behind her, Chloe twitches nervously waiting for something to happen. Turning back, Max nods to indicate everything is good.

Once they had decided on a plan of action, the next course was to decide who to go along with Max and Chloe was an easy choice. Out of all of them, she was the only one that can't get expelled. One can't get kicked out of school twice, after all. Victoria and Kate were to remain outside on watch.

As soon as they stepped into the boys' dorm, Chloe looks badly at the surroundings. The room map had been so vandalized as to be near useless. The graffiti and vandalism seem to have expanded throughout the entire boys' dorm. Nearly every wall has its share of dick jokes, name calling, and slurs. It's not as if the girls' dorm is completely clean, but the people here are really living up to the gender stereotype.

"What the fuck kind of useless map is this?" Chloe mutters looking at the room map. "The only thing I learned from this is which room belongs to two guys named Daniel and Hayden."

Max glances at the whiteboards besides two of the rooms. "No worries, Chloe. I think we can learn some of it from the whiteboards. The rest is just simple deduction, I think."

Chloe looks at Max hesitantly biting her lips. She moves ahead making a left turn at the corner. "I think it might be here, Max."

"Hm? How do you know?"

"Ah, here it is." Chloe points to a door. "'Prescotts rule this town'. There's our boy."

Chloe tests turning the handle, but it is hopeless. "Damn, the door is locked. We'll have to-"

Max suddenly grabs her arm and turns her around. Her face is pale.

"Chloe. How did you find the door so quickly?"

Chloe averts her eyes. "It's a bit of a long story. We'll talk-"

"That attempted rape you told me about. Did it happen here?"

A silence ensues. Eventually, swallowing, Chloe says, "Yeah, it did. I woke up groggy and quickly made my escape, but I still remembered enough to find the room again."

"Why didn't you say anything, Chloe?" Max wails. "Go back outside. I'll handle this by myself."

This is what she was afraid of when she pointed out the room. She knew Max would try to send her back if she realizes that her attempt assault took place here, but damn it, she wanted to come along. Besides, she's Chloe fucking Price. She's been in much worse situations.

"No, Max. I'm not letting you do this alone."

"Send Victoria. I'm sure she'll-"

"Are you really going to ask me to do that, Max? After what just happened? Look, Max…" Chloe sighs, "I'm not as self-conscious about it as Kate is."

"You can't be-"

"I am serious. Look, lets talk more inside, alright? I don't want someone walking in on us."

"You said the door is locked, though, right?"

The unspoken question was quickly answered when Chloe takes out a pocket knife, jams it into the door, and jimmies it open almost instantly. Impressed, Max follows Chloe inside and they shut the door behind them.

The first thing that catches both their attention is the projector on the ceiling, but that attention is short lived in favor of the numerous other things around Nathan's room that seems to scream. His bed, couch, floor, and desks were all littered with photos of various people in bound posses.

Chloe walks off to the other side all while fingering various things. "What the fuck is all this shit? Does he have some sort of BDSM fetish?" She walks over to a bookcase of DVDs and photos. "Looks at the movies this creeper watches. It's all gore porn."

Max squints but couldn't make out any of the titles Chloe was referring to. "Ugh, it's too dark in here. Let me get the lamp."

"Don't bother. I busted it during my escape."

Chloe flinches when Max's lips tighten realizing she just gave her another reminder of what had happened in this room. However, the brunette doesn't react badly instead choosing to walk to Nathan's drawers to search.

She breathes a sigh of relief only to freeze a moment later when she sees Max pulls a familiar note out of the drawer. She tiptoes a bit nearer to glance over to see if the note is what she thinks it is.

_HEY ASSHOLE_

_we need to talk or_

_I'm going to tell everybody_

_what you did and you're going to_

_pay motherfucker_

Chloe mentally cusses Nathan out. What kind of _fucking idiot_ keeps this kind of incriminating evidence around? And right in his fucking drawer?

"What the fuck…"

Max's whisper catches her attention and she looks over her shoulder again to see what she's holding. It's some kind of photo. It looks like-

Chloe's heart nearly stops.

A sickening feeling lurches up her stomach and she mentally cusses out Nathan again. That sick asshole kept a photo he took of her after he drugged her and he also kept it in the same stupid place he kept that blackmail note. What she wouldn't give to stab that asshole once or twice.

Max turns around and stares steadily at her. "Chloe, leave. Leave and just stay with Victoria and Kate."

She knew this would happen. "I said no, Max. Look, I'm alright. Just look at me." Chloe gestures to herself. "I'm pissed, yeah, but I'm lucky enough that nothing happened."

"That's ridiculous. You shouldn't have to see this kind of thing. _I_ wouldn't want to see this kind of thing if it happened to me."

"But I want to, Max." Chloe sighs looking a little tired. "Look, don't send me away. I was really happy you picked me to come with you. Don't make me leave because of something like this."

"Chloe?"

"I just mean…look, we've met again for the first time only, like three days ago and, ever since then, I've been wanting to catch up with you badly. I wanted us to go see the lighthouse again, to hang out at American Rust, to eat at Two Whales. So far, you only visited American Rust for a little bit and then stayed at my house, which sucked too."

"Then this fucking bullshit day happened and I'm feeling only slightly better than trash right now. Don't…please don't make me go. I want to stay by you."

Max's eyes widen a bit and she stares at Chloe who shifts uncomfortably feeling exposed. Understanding flit through Max's eyes and they slowly soften as some sort of acceptance seem to go through her. Chloe only catches part of this being too nervous to look Max directly in the eyes, but she catches enough to be confused as to where she stands and what her friend is thinking.

"Alright, Chloe. Stay by me."

Then Max turns away and begins searching under Nathan's bed. Chloe remains still unsure of exactly what happened other than that she got what she wanted. She runs Max's words through her head a few times, but she isn't sure how to take it.

Hesitantly, she turns away to continue her own search. On a whim, she decided to search around the couch. Well, actually, it's more than a whim as this is one of the places she herself would think to hide something she doesn't want others to see.

Nathan already made it abundantly clear that they don't think alike considering the things he keeps in a fucking _drawer_ , but she hopes he has enough sense to hide worse things elsewhere.

At last, something catches her eyes. "Max, over here. I think I found our boy's hiding spot. There are scratch marks on the floor. I'm thinking he moves this couch a lot and he moves it a lot because he's hiding something behind it."

Together, they simultaneously pull the couch away from the wall. Then Chloe ducks behind the couch and her eyes land on a journal. She peeks inside and notices Nathan writing notes down on various days.

"Looks like little Nate keeps a diary behind here."

"A diary?" Max repeats breathlessly. "Awesome! This could be it, Chloe!"

She wasn't nearly as sure. As she flips through more of the book, she was seeing plenty of blank pages. The few pages that weren't blank look nearly incoherent.

"Slow your roll, Maximus. He didn't keep up with his writing. There are only a few pages of writing, some drawings, and then it abruptly stops."

"Oh." Max says unable to stop the disappointment. "Are you sure it doesn't say anything useful?"

She restarts from the beginning and flips through the book hoping to see anything that might catch her eye. Almost by chance, one of the pages that flew by had some large drawing that gets her attention and she immediately goes back.

"Oh, found something." She says excitedly. "One of the pages here has Kate's and Rachel's name together and circled."

"We already knew they were linked, though." Max frowns. "Anything else?"

"Looking now."

She turns to the page right after. Nothing. It was literally blank. She checks the next few pages. A few had more nonsensical writing before more blank pages. Why the hell did Nathan skip so many pages before writing again? Why didn't he write sequentially like any normal person?

After several more of this, she comes upon something interesting.

"Well, well, looks like step-ass has been busy. There's a page and it's full of Nathan bitching about David fucking with him. Says he's been spying on our boy and questioning him."

Hesitating, Max asks, "Do you think David found out anything about him?"

"I know what you're thinking already." Chloe says blandly while continuing to look through the rest of the diary. "I don't know if he found out anything, but if he did, I guarantee you he won't tell us." She sighs. "The rest of this is garbage."

Chloe throws the diary onto the ground and walks away to examine some things on Nathan's desk. Behind her, she hears Max picking up the diary but she is convinced there is nothing useful in there.

Meanwhile, though, Nathan's desk is full of photography junk. Lens, old fashion film, mini tripods, and more. She rifles through this junk lazily not really expecting to find anything of use.

However, her eyes did land on something interesting.

"Huh, nice, rich boy. I wonder how much this baby will go for?"

Chloe grins to herself as she picks up hefty camera labeled 'Canon'. She doesn't know much about cameras, but she does recognize the brand and she also knows the fit and finish of the thing means that it is likely expensive.

Seems like a small price for rich boy to pay considering the shit he put her through.

"Chloe, no."

She stumbles a bit quickly putting the camera back, then turns around to face Max.

"What? I wasn't doing anything?" She says hoping her face doesn't look as sullen as she feels. "Though it would be nice to be able to pay off Frank…"

That was another foot in mouth moment. She looks at Max's face and she can almost tell the thoughts going through her head. She knows what's coming next.

"Chloe, how much…do you…?"

There it is. She smiles grimly. "Three grand. Not to mention interest."

"Jesus, Chloe."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Don't nag me too. I get enough of that from my mom." Chloe sighs falling onto the couch. "I made a mistake, Max. I know it. God, I know it. But I was _desperate_. Rachel said she wanted to leave Arcadia Bay with me, but the only method we had of doing it – my truck – was on the fritz. To get it fixed cost three grand, which I didn't have, so I borrowed it from Frank. I figured I could pay it back once I found a job in Cali."

"I had just gotten it fixed when everything started going wrong. Rachel started getting distant and disappearing on me. It fucked me. I started having panic attacks thinking I was about to lose someone again. She would appear again, but refuse to tell me where she was. When I pressed her about LA, she insists we were still going but she kept putting it off for reasons she wouldn't say."

"Then one day, she disappeared. I stayed in Arcadia and I'm left with a three grand debt."

God, she feels so pitiful right then. How can one person fuck up so often and so badly?

'It's okay, Chloe. We all make mistakes." Max says though her voice is wavering. "I won't let anything happen to you, though. Not as long as I'm alive."

Somehow, Chloe gets the feeling that the kind of mistakes most girls her age makes doesn't involve getting into serious debt with the local drug dealer. She is happy to hear Max won't run in the opposite direction, though.

Trying to work up some humor, she quips, "Considering you're supposedly unable to die, that _is_ very assuring."

The sound of vibration alerts them. Max reaches into her pocket to get her phone. She looks at it a moment, then turns to her.

"Victoria is worried about us."

Rolling her eyes, Chloe gets off the couch and pushes it back against the wall. "I think we got what we need so we're done anyway. Uh, you sure you won't let me nick that camera?"

"Don't, Chloe. We don't need to antagonize Nathan any further. Plus, Victoria and Kate might not like it too much either."

"Damn." She sighs again. "Alright, you win, Mad Max. I'll leave the camera."

She hesitantly puts the camera back feeling as if she got fucked by life again. For a moment, she wishes Max was more like Rachel…who most definitely would be alright with this type of payback. Then she quickly reminds herself of why she doesn't want that to be the case.

"Right. Lets go." Max says. "By the way, that camera is a Canon EOS 5D. You see that nifty, elongated lens at the bottom right of the drawer? That's a Sigma lens. It's probably worth twice as much as the camera."

Chloe glance back at the drawer in surprise, but quickly shakes it off. "If I ever decide to steal stuff from Victoria, I'm taking you with me, Max."

She gets up behind Max as the latter peeks outside the room. After a moment, she gives a hand signal and they both quickly head for the exit. Outside, they're hardly ten feet from the door when Victoria and Kate rush up to meet them.

"Did you guys find anything?" Victoria asks.

"We might have a few leads." Max says nodding. She looks up at the now dark sky contemplatively. "It's pretty dark now, so I don't know if we should continue or wait until the next day."

"I want to keep going." Chloe says quickly. "Lets follow one more lead before turning in."

Max agrees. "Yeah, I'm willing too. Victoria? Kate? If you guys don't want to, we can find out what we can and pass on the info."

"Don't be ridiculous." Victoria says. "Of course I'm going. I want to find out what's happening as quickly as possible."

"I want to too." Kate says. "I feel like we're on the precipice of finding out something important. With God watching over us, I think we'll make good progress tonight."

Smiling at all of them, Max says, "Thank you all." She clears her throat. "Anyway, like I said, me and Chloe found a few leads. We found Nathan's diary. In it, he has a page where he circles Kate's and Rachel's names."

Kate purses her lips in distaste but says nothing.

"We also found a page where Nathan rants about David Madsen spying on him. It may be possible that David has some kind of information on him."

Victoria touches her lips. "The security guard, right? Huh. I remember that. Nathan came to a Vortex party once, got drunk, and began yelling about him. Later on, though, he went to Wells to get the guard off his back. What did this guy do exactly?"

"The diary didn't say." Chloe shakes her head. "All it had was whining and cussing about spying, questioning, and harassing. It didn't go into any real detail so we have no idea what happened."

"There's also one more thing. The rest of the diary is mostly just random ranting and stuff, but on one of the pages, Nathan complained about 'a barn'. Here, I took a photo with my phone. I'll send it to you all."

Chloe looks at Max in surprise. There was really something else useful in there? But what the hell is useful about Nathan bitching about a stupid barn? When Max pulls up the photo and text it to them all, she quickly pulls out her phone to check it.

It was a photo of only a few lines.

_Stpd fucing barn_

_Road will destroy my car_

_Gotta finish math hmwk_

_Hate fucking deer_

What the hell does this even mean? It's like a random, stream-of-consciousness bit that makes no sense whatsoever. For all Chloe knew, he could be complaining about something from a video game or a movie.

The only hope she has at all that this might have any use is that she's positive Nathan isn't into farming.

Once she gave them time to look at it, Max ask, "Victoria, do you know anything about this?"

"A barn." Victoria repeats blandly. "I have no clue. He never mentioned anything about that. What about it?"

"Well, it's just really a hunch on my part. It stands out because he randomly mentions a barn in the middle of other basic stuff and I just thought it was a weird. Plus, barns are pretty good for hiding things, right? I figure it's possible we might find something if we do a search there."

"That seems like a long shot." Victoria says sighing. "But I suppose it wouldn't hurt to cover our bases."

"Where is this barn?" Kate asks.

Max coughs a bit. "That's where the problem comes in. It was literally only those words with no information whatsoever."

Chloe groans. "Maximus, this is Arcadia Bay. There are probably a million farms all with their own barns around. We could probably go into a random direction and stumble upon on in a half hour."

"I don't think it's _that_ bad…" Victoria begins. "…but this is definitely too vague. It would probably take us days just looking through all the barns in the area and we'll probably still find nothing."

"You're both right." Max shakes her head sadly. "I don't know why I thought following such a lead was a good idea. I don't even know if there's any real substance to it or if Nathan was really just complaining about a barn for no particular reason."

"Can we use GPS maps?" Max, Victoria, and Chloe turns to Kate. "If Nathan is hiding something in a barn, then it would probably be a secluded one, right? We can use GPS maps' satellite images to just find the most secluded barns in the area and try there."

"That's…a great idea!" Max hugs Kate. "Yes, lets do that!"

"That's still a pretty long shot, you know." Victoria mutters, though she also seems more satisfied. She begins leading the way towards the parking lot. "Do you know how to do this, Kate?"

Kate takes out her smartphone and begins searching. "Yes, I travel to a few out of the way places regularly so I learned how to do this. Just give me a few minutes."

"Gotcha." Chloe nods. "So guys, my truck?"

Victoria grimaces. "Fuck no. I don't need grease all over my clothes on top of everything else. We're going in my car. Try not to get yourself all over the leather seats."

Almost as soon as she begins to feel heated and ready to lash back, a hand touches her own. Max's, of course. "Chill, Chloe, she doesn't mean it. Beside, Victoria's car does have space for more people."

Chloe mutters something under her breath but acquiesces. Once they reach the parking lot, Victoria electronically unlocks the car and gets into the driver seat. Chloe calls shotgun before jumping in. Kate and Max go inside the back.

"Did you find anything yet, Kate?" Max asks.

"I looked around and there seems to be only three that might be it. One of them is so deep in the woods that it's surrounded by trees and there doesn't even seem to be a road. It looks like you have to hike there."

"What about the others?"

"Another one is on a farm. A very large one with a huge field. There is what looks like a red barn near the backend of it. There's a paved road leading to it but we'll have to drive for 30-40 minutes to get there."

Kate continues after hearing no comments, "The last one is also deep in the woods but it's clearer. There are a lot of hills around and there's a dirt road leading up. It's kind of weird, but it also has a powerline up there."

"A single barn in the middle of nowhere with powerlines? Is that normal?" Chloe asks.

"Well, the first one I talked about didn't have any, but the second did."

Victoria hums to herself. "The second sounds pretty normal, though, just far away from town. That last one, though, is also deep in the woods with only a dirt path but still has power. Are there any other buildings around it?"

"One right next to it, but nothing else for miles around. No houses, stores, or anything."

"Can you see if the building is abandoned?"

"GPS maps isn't that accurate, Victoria. The only thing I make out is some sort of rusty looking car there and nothing else. No fields or anything."

"This one." Max says. "I say we try this one. The fact that it caught all of our attention the most should say something, right?"

"It could just be a coincidence." Victoria says. "We're using our feelings too much instead of doing things based on real knowledge."

"Well, we're doing this based on a hunch to begin with. What's a few more? We got nothing to lose." Chloe says.

Victoria sighs in annoyance. "I guess you're right, Price. Alright, lets go."

Kate set the coordinates into her phone and spent the entire ride giving Victoria directions. She only stopped when they came upon a narrow dirt path large enough for only a single vehicle at a time. The ride through was bumpy to say the least and, more than a few times, the underside of Victoria's car grinded against the uneven path causing her to clench her teeth. Sufficed to say, a sporty luxury car is not the type of car designed for such roads.

Chloe looks outside scowling. It had already been dark by the time they left Blackwell to go on this search, but Blackwell had street lights. Combined with the light from houses and stores, Arcadia Bay is generally well lit even during night time.

This area…isn't.

Not only are there no lights whatsoever, but even the light from the stars and moon is dimmed by the numerous trees. Not that she is afraid of the dark, but all the same, she is glad for the presence of her friends.

After what seems like an eternity due to the slow speed Victoria was forced to drive at, they come to a worn down building adjacent to a windmill and another worn down building. Both appear to be abandoned.

They all stare at this scene in silence until Chloe takes the initiative to get out. Victoria follows after then Max and Kate.

She wanders up to the building and didn't hesitate to begin pulling at the doors. "Holy shit, there's a padlock here. Why the hell does this need to be locked? What the hell is even out here?"

"Can you even really store anything in here?" Victoria says examining the building in distaste. "Even in the dark, I see there are fucking holes everywhere. If it rains, every inch of this place will probably get covered."

Chloe wonders over to a rusted car off to the side looking at it blankly. She also looks at the silhouette of a building a bit away. Completely dark and noticeably decrepit. What kind of place is this? Why are there two buildings like this in the middle of nowhere?

"Hey." Victoria calls. "There are tire tracks beside the door."

Chloe walks over with Max and all three bend down to look as Victoria shines a light from her phone on it. Not being a detective or anything of the sort, she couldn't make much from it other than that it is, indeed, tire tracks and that means a car must have been here.

"They look like tires from a larger car." Victoria says uncertain. "They also look aged, so it's been a while since it's been here?"

"You don't sound too sure, Victor."

Victoria shoots a glare which she isn't sure can even be seen. "Because I am unsure. I'm not fucking Sherlock Holmes."

"Everyone! I found an opening!"

They all jump at Kate's loud voice. Heading into the direction it came from, they find Kate holding a large rusted metal sheet covering an opening into the barn.

"Seriously?" Victoria mutters. "A large padlock on the front door but an easy opening on the side?"

Chloe grins. "Who cares? Their fuck up is our win."

She, of course, runs in first. As soon as Chloe steps in, she spots a wooden chest and jumps on it to see its content. She shines the light from her phone around the chest trying to see what's inside.

"What the fuck? It's all worthless news clippings. All about the Prescotts. Prescotts does this, Prescotts does that. Why the hell is this here? What shit."

"No, Price." Victoria says. "This is a good thing. Apparently, Max's hunch turns out to be right and this proves it. Who else but the Prescotts would keep such a thing?"

"Huh, I guess you have a point." Chloe pauses a moment to say then resume her search. "Still, I hope there's more than just this bullshit here."

A loud creeking sound stops all of them. Their attention turns above to see where the noise came from. There appear to be some kind of small second level platform followed by a third level larger platform. On the third level platform is the silhouette of some kind of small vehicle that is very close to the edge.

A few minutes later, the creek comes again and, this time, it is clear the creeking is coming from the boards right under the vehicle indicating that it may be decaying.

Max lets out a relieved sigh. "Whew, that made my heart pause."

"I'm going to search the rest of this place." Victoria says after getting ahold of herself. She turns on her smartphone light.

Max and Kate both take the cue and turn on the light on their phone too. Each person wonders off to a spot to do their own searching. Kate moves over to a table near the entry and rummages around.

"There's a photo here of Henry Prescott." Kate calls out.

"I also found something else." Victoria's voice flits out from behind a tractor. "There's a box here full of letters from various Prescotts. One is a letter threatening someone to pay their debts, another is a letter about buying real estate on the cheap because of some kind of bad storm, and there's a lot more."

Sighing in relief, Max remarks, "If there's any doubt that we found the right place, I guess we can put it to rest now."

"I'll give it to you, Super Max. Your sixth sense beats mine." Chloe laughs. "Still, why the hell is all of this here? You seriously expect me to believe Nathan is keeping nostalgic scraps and hiding it in an old barn in the middle of nowhere?"

"You did find the info from his diary, didn't you?" Victoria asks. "Still, maybe it's a family thing. Maybe he complained because his family forced him to help move stuff here?"

"You might be right." Max says. "Still, I don't want to think we came all the way out here just for that. Lets keep searching."

Chloe sighs. "We should have come out here during the day. It's dark as shit and my phone light isn't helping much. Plus it's going to run out of battery at this rate."

"We'll just do a little more, Chloe. I'm positive we'll find some-"

Max's word is abruptly cut off by the sound of a car arriving. They all look at each other in horror. On reflex born from many similar experiences, Chloe immediately starts hiding in the closest area she knows, which meant she decided to jump right into the wooden chest she was examining and close the lid.

As she was surrounded in darkness trying to calm her heart, she immediately thought of jumping back out, grabbing Max, and pulling her inside the chest too, but the sound of shuffling outside the chest clues her in that everyone else must be finding their own spot. She prays wherever Max is ends up being the place they never think to look.

An unbearable silence falls inside the barn. Slowly, voices begin to filter in – voices of two men. Then the sound of the padlock on the door being unlocked and the barn door opening.

Through a sliver of opening in the chest, light comes in. Chloe leans up slightly and tries to look through. The light were coming form what looks like car headlights and she can also see two men holding flashlight looking around.

"Alright, come out now." A voice calls out. "We know you're there, so stop fucking hiding."

Of course, his command is ignored. The sound of footsteps is loud in the fearful silence.

Another, hoarser voice appears. "See? Lets check that place. That car might be Nathan's."

"I told you, dumbass, Nathan doesn't drive that car. No, he didn't buy a new one either; I just saw him a few days ago."

"What about Jefferson?"

"Not him either. Would you stop it already? Beside, you can see the trap door ain't even open."

It took a minute before it hit her. She knows that name – Jefferson. This is the name of Max's teacher and also Rachel's teacher when she was in Blackwell. It doesn't make any sense at all, though. What would Max's and Rachel's teacher have to do with a Prescott-owned barn in the middle of nowhere? What would he have to do with the Prescotts at all? Or Nathan?

Whatever it is, it can't be good. Chloe doesn't like it in the slightest and, once she gets out of here, she wants some fucking answers.

"It's the only thing that makes sense. What kind of person that drives a nice car like that would come to a shitty place like this? And in the middle of the goddamn night?"

"I don't know and I don't care, but we're-" A creeking sound echoes out. "What the hell was that? It sounds like it came from over there."

She can damn near hear her heart thumping and she sends many prayers hoping that isn't one of girls. Not even Victoria. These two jackasses look like people straight from comic book villains and they sound like it too. There is nothing good that's going to happen if they find one (or all) of them.

"What the fuck is this? Why is there a hole in the side of this place?"

"I _told_ you somebody was here! If it was Nathan or Jefferson, you think they'd go through this way? No, it has to be somebody who doesn't have a key."

"Son of a bitch. If we don't find out who it is, Mr. Prescott will have our hides."

Another creeking sound, but this one came from above.

"Where the hell is that sound coming from?" There is a pause. "Fucking hell. Look up there. The sound is coming from that old motor. I think the floorboard is bad or something."

The other man sighs. "Well, the sound is nothing, but still, we know someone is here now. Billy, go get the gun and slice the tires on that car too. We don't want them going anywhere. I'll do a search."

"Gotcha." After a set of footsteps fades off, the man talks audibly as a beam from a flashlight swings around. "Now where is my little friend here? Come out and we promise we won't even call the police."

"Come on. Come out!"

A loud kick is heard nearby the chest she is hiding in.

"Come on, come on…found you!"

Chloe's heart skips a beat at that, but the man lets out a muffled curse later indicating he looked in the wrong place. His footsteps begin reverberating again. Almost unconsciously, Chloe fingers the back of her jeans and feels the familiar shape of the revolver she's carrying.

This does a lot to calm her. She's been carrying it for a while now ever since she stole it from David – initially for fun and because she hated David's guts, but it later became a means of protecting herself against some very real people who seriously wants to hurt her for various reasons.

She had enough sense to ensure no one, especially Max, ever noticed it, and it's now paying off. If something were to happen, she can jump out and get those guys to back off. Peacefully or violently. She can finally do something right for once.

Another set of footsteps. "Alright, I got the gun. Did you find anyone?'

"Does it look like I did? Still, there's not too many places to hide here. We'll split up. You cover the other side and I take this side. If you find-" Another creek. "-anyone, do not shoot them right away. I want to question them."

Oh shit. They have a gun too. Chloe was really hoping they didn't.

And 'right away'? These guys sound like they plan to kill whoever they find. Why? There's nothing fucking valuable in here! It's just a bunch of letters and news clippings!

Footsteps sound out again as they continue searching. One of them steps nearer to her chest, but doesn't look directly at it. Another one walks off to the side looking around.

"Christ, this place creep me the hell out." The platform creeks again. "And that creeking sound is making things worse. Why do we have to come here so late at night?"

"Because we were told to. Now shut the hell up and keep searching."

One of the light is now gone and Chloe silently wonders to herself where everyone is hiding. She didn't even bother to listen to where they may have run off to more concerned with hiding herself.

The only bright side to this is that she knows they won't immediately kill anyone they find, so she-

Her chest suddenly flies open and she finds herself staring wide eyes up at the face of one of the men. She scrambles trying to reach around her back to grab the revolver but he grabs her before she could do so causing her to let out an involuntary scream.

She struggles but he lifts her out of the chest effortlessly holding her by her neck, then slams her against the wall causing her head to bounce against it making her sight blur for a moment. When she gathers herself and look into his smirking face, she attempts to spit at it only to have him dodge.

"Let go of me, asshole!"

His smirk only widens. "Lookit here. We have a rebel on our hands." She struggles some more futilely. "What the fuck are you doing here, bitch?"

"None of your goddamn business. Get your hands off me!"

He lets go of her. As she tries to straighten herself, a fist slams into her stomach knocking the wind out of her. Pain blooms from inside her and she feels as if she's about to vomit up her guts. Chloe doubles over sucking in breaths coughing and wheezing.

When she is able to catch her breath, she looks up at them feeling fear inside of her growing bigger and bigger.

"I'll scream." She says shakily. "I swear I'll scream."

"Go ahead. You know where we are. You think anyone will hear you?" Chloe doesn't respond. "What the hell are you doing here?"

She thinks about the revolver again. Can she grab it and aim it in time?

"I…I was waiting for some friends. We were going to use this place to smoke out. I swear I didn't know anyone was still using this place."

One of the men cursed. "Does that mean a bunch of kids know about this place already? And they're coming here too? What the hell do we do?"

"I'm going to make a call. For now, though, keep an eye on this girl. If she does anything, kick the shit out of her. If she tries to fight back, shoot her. You got that?"

"Yeah, I got it. Just hurry back, alright? I can't stand-" The platform creeks again. "Goddamn that creeking! Anyway, just come back quickly with some rope so we can tie her up. It'll be too risky without it. I don't even know if this gun works."

"The hell you mean you don't know?"

"It's a shitty gun I got at a pawn shop, okay? I never tested it."

"Goddamn it, Billy. Shoot somewhere and try it then."

Another creek. "Alright, I think I know where to shoot."

A deafening shot rings out causing flinch and duck her head. Once the echoes died down and her ears stopped ringing, she notices the creeking from before is worse and louder. She slowly lifts her head again.

"Smart. You made it worse." More heavy groaning from the platform. "You even hit the damn wheel. Next time, just shoot at the wall or floor, dumbass."

The man begins walking away, but the creeking followed by the sound of something breaking stops him.

"What in the hell now?"

There is suddenly a loud crashing sound from the top. Before Chloe could even react, the platform above breaks apart and the machine the guy shot at comes crashing down. It breaks down the lower platform and lands with a loud crash. Simultaneously, a deafening shriek rings out.

Chloe pales recognizing who the shriek belongs to. She was hiding underneath the platform?

The two men runs over and one of them tries to cover her mouth to shout the screaming.

"Shut up! Shut up!"

Chloe scrambles over. "Get your fucking hands off her!" She kicks his hands away causing him to shout in pain, but she ignores him and bends down holding onto Max's face. "Max? Max? Answer me!"

Holy _fuck_ , there was so much blood spilling out of her mouth. The machine landed right on her legs and lower back. She has stopped screaming, but her eyes are shut tight with tears flowing freely indicating how extreme the pain she is in. Her skin is also losing color quickly and she's struggling to breathe.

From behind her, the man shouts, "Christ, you lying bitch. Your friends are already here, aren't they? Where the hell are the rest of them?"

Chloe ignores his question. Facing him in panic, she shouts, "Hospital! She needs a hospital, man! Fucking call an ambulance!"

"Shut up!" The man shouts slapping Chloe so hard her head snaps to the side. "You want to help her? Tell me where the rest of your friends are and I'll get her to a hospital." Chloe ignored him turning back to Max trying to give her whatever comfort she could. "Give me the gun."

The man takes the gun from his friend, then walks up and points the barrel at Max. Chloe pales. "Tell me or she dies."

"Fuck, no, please, don't shoot her. I…I was lying before. I swear I-"

"No, you're lying _now_. One last chance – tells me or she dies."

Chloe opens and shuts her mouth uncertain on what to do. Before she could say anything, though, a deafening shot rings out and the man screams clutching his stomach as he collapses. The other jumps back in shock turning around.

"Don't move. Unless you want to be next." Victoria says stepping out of the shadows aiming a handgun. "Now toss me the keys to your car. Chloe, grab Max."

She stares at Victoria in shock. "What the hell? You had a gun?"

"Now's not the time, Price!" Victoria yells exasperatedly. "Grab Max now!"

Chloe jumps over the still screaming man and takes a deep breath before lifting the machine off causing Max to moan softly in pain. "Max? It's okay. I'm here. I'm going to pick you up then we're going to a hospital, alright?"

Leaning down and slowly maneuvering her arms under Max's body, she lifts her up causing short gasps of pain. Chloe tries to be as careful as possible despite the panic flowing through her. Once she has Max up, she calls out.

"I got her, Victoria!"

"Good. We're leaving." Victoria says backing up as she stares the still standing man down. "You fucking stay there or I'll put a bullet in you too. Kate, come out. We're leaving now."

The other girl meekly peeks out from her hiding place and slowly gets out. Her wide eyes flit shortly to the bloody man gasping heavily on the floor as she runs over to Victoria's side.

"I'm going ahead."

Chloe heads out the now opened barn doors holding on tightly to Max. Victoria glares one last time at the still standing man then turns to run as Kate follows behind her.

"F-fuck you!" The fallen man curses them reaching for the gun he dropped after getting shot.

The curse went unheard, but seconds later, a shot is fired. It hits Kate in her shoulders. She collapses screaming as Victoria turns around in shock.

"Fuck!" Victoria shouts.

The blonde blindly aims her gun towards the barn and return fire. Her attention is broken, though, when _another_ shot rings out but from a different direction. Victoria snaps her head towards the side of the barn where the other man is standing having escaped through the side entry. He is holding up a handgun he had hidden on his body.

He fires two more shots towards Victoria who ducks and blindly fires back. After hearing the first shot that brought Kate down, Chloe had already ran behind Victoria's car to take cover. Gently placing Max down, she pulls out her own revolver and fires a single shot towards the standing man before ducking back.

A moment later, Victoria scrambles around the side of the car falling into cover beside her.

"Fuck, fuck, I can't believe this shit!" Victoria shouts hysterically. "Shit, how many bullets do I have left? And _you_! You had a fucking gun all this time? Why didn't you get it out before?"

"I didn't have a chance to!" Chloe's eyes widen a little. "Wait a minute. Where's Kate?"

Victoria becomes silent as her wide, frightened eyes glaze over. A response is unneeded, though, as Kate's pained cries can be heard now that the shooting has died down.

"You left her there, Victoria?!"

"I didn't have a choice! Fuck! I tried to go get her, but he kept shooting at me! I lost it when two bullets grazed my hair!"

Chloe slumps against the car in fear and disbelief. She lays a hand on Max's head and shivers seeing that the girl has now become quiet and her breathing is getting slower. There is blood all over Max's body and her own too. Max's face is getting increasingly clammy.

"Victoria, I think Max is losing too much blood. She feels cold and she's trembling. She needs medical help _fast_."

"I know, damn it, _I know_. Kate needs help too. But what the hell do we do? I think I wasted half the magazine already. The other guy might have more bullets."

"Who cares? Just fire what you have at him!"

Victoria snarls at Chloe, "And what if I run out? What the fuck do we do then?"

"We fucking throw bricks if we have to, Victoria. Look, if you _don't_ use it, we're all fucked, especially Kate. Do you hear her crying for help right now?" Victoria grows quiet at this hearing it very clearly. "You fucking owe her, Victoria. For all the shit you've pulled. Get the fuck out there and grab her."

Victoria snarls. "Fuck, fine! Just back off me! I'll run out and try to grab her. You're going to cover me, right?"

"Yeah, I will, but hurry the hell up. This is a six shooter and I already shot one bullet."

"If you run out, then start throwing bricks!" The blonde shouts. "If I fucking die or get shot out there, I fucking swear I'll save the last bullet for you!"

"Enough, already! Just get out there!"

Victoria hesitates a moment, then peeks her head out to make sure the coast is clear. Taking a deep breath, she then scrambles out rushing towards Kate. She makes it over and Kate is crying and moaning in pain, though she is still conscious and aware. She wraps her arms around Victoria's neck as the latter scoop her up. Before they could get off the ground, though, a shot is heard and a bullet hits the ground a little ahead of them.

"Chloe, fucking shoot him already!" Victoria shrieks nearly losing grip of Kate. "Shoot him!"

At the car, Chloe already spotted the guy and was taking aim, but Victoria's yell actually caused him to be aware of it. She cussed and started firing hitting the side of the barn causing him to duck back and return fire. Victoria finally made it back just as she fired off three bullets.

She snaps back into cover and stares at her revolver worriedly. That's four bullets total. She has only two bullets left. If Victoria wasted half her magazine, then that means they have maybe eight or so bullets between the two of them. Fuck.

Victoria drops beside her and turns around bearing her teeth. "Fuck you, Price!"

"What?"

"You call that shit covering? We were nearly shot out there!"

"Hey, I almost got him if your shouting hadn't given him a warning!"

"When would you have? After he finished shooting me and Kate?"

"Look, lets not get into this now, alright? Max and Kate are badly hurt. We need to find some way to get them out of here and to a hospital."

"I'm listening for ideas, but I'm all out of them. These cocksuckers slashed the tires on my car."

"Can't we just drive with it? You can afford new fucking tires and rims later!"

"Are you out of your fucking mind? The rims would tear to pieces before we drive a mile and we wouldn't even move anymore!"

"Fuck!" Chloe falls against the car. She breathes heavily. "Those guys have a car. Lets take theirs."

"I'm waiting for an idea on how."

Silence. "I'll be bait."

"…bait?"

"I'll approach the barn and draw him out. I'll open fire, but if I don't get him, you do. Okay?"

"You'll seriously do this?" Victoria says her eyes almost showing some level of respect. "Really?"

"Max fucking needs help, damn it. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if I let her die here."

"Alright, I got you. Once you leave, I'll keep hidden behind the front of the car. "As soon as I see him, I'll start shooting."

"Alright. Good. That's good."

Chloe says this though she feels nauseous. It's a lot easier sounding brave than doing it. She leans down beside Max who is now completely silent and very pale. She stares a moment at her face and strokes her cheek.

"Don't worry, Max." She whispers. "You'll be alright. We'll both be alright. I'll get you to a hospital."

Somehow, the words meant for Max helped her nerves instead. Feeling stronger, she moves over to the tail end of the car passing Kate on the way who nods at her and whispers 'be careful' through a pained hiss. Without looking back – afraid that she might lose her nerve – Chloe shoots out from the car rushing over to the abandoned one.

She falls on her stomach there and peeks underneath the car towards the side of the barn. The other guy is standing there with his eyes closed as if offering up a prayer to the sky. Seeing an opportunity, she takes aim and fires a bullet.

Chloe cusses when it misses and alerts him instead. He looks around confused, then peeks his head around the barn. Chloe fires again missing yet again and he turns to stare directly at her. He then returns fire as she ducks behind the car tire. She blindly fires her last bullet over the hood of the car and, of course, it misses too.

Cussing repeatedly, she wonders why the hell hasn't Victoria open fire yet. The guy came to the realization she's out of bullets and is now freely returning fire rapidly. Suddenly, he stops too. Chloe peeks around the car and sees him removing the gun magazine. He's out of bullets too.

Then he fumbles around in his back pocket and, a moment later, he takes out another magazine.

Chloe quickly looks around. Spotting a large rock, she grabs it and makes a dash for the guy who's still fumbling with his gun. He looks up in surprise and she leaps at him making an overheard swing with the rock. She hits him right on the head and she hears a crack as the two of them fall over.

He collapses over unconscious as blood pours down his head. She pauses a moment in surprise that her speedy plan worked.

Gathering her wits, she searches his pockets and finds a set of keys in one of his shirt pockets. Clutching it tightly, she runs back to Victoria's car slowly growing angrier and angrier.

" _Goddamn it_ , Victoria, why the fuck didn't you shoot!"

When she rushes to where they were, though, she freezes in horror. Victoria was leaning over Max's body giving her CPR, but Max wasn't responding. A feeling of dread quickly rises inside of her.

"No…no, no, no no." Chloe mutters repeatedly.

Victoria hears her and looks up. "A-after you left, I noticed she wasn't breathing. I checked and she doesn't have a pulse or a heartbeat either. I think she-"

"No, no, no, no! Shut up!" Chloe shouts. "Shut up, shut up, shut up!"

She rushes over pushing Victoria off Max. Maneuvering her arms underneath, she lifts her up and moves towards a dirty Civic parked behind Victoria's car. She opens the back door using the tips of her fingers and gently places Max's body in, then rushes into the driver's seat.

Victoria rushes over and was just barely able to get Kate in the back with Max then get in herself before Chloe gets the car turned on and stomps out of the area.

"Slow the fuck down! You'll get us killed!"

Chloe ignores her and continues a mad rush down the path. She drifts onto the main road and speeds up to make it to town quicker. It had taken them three quarters of an hour to reach the barn, but she is sure she can get back to Arcadia and the hospital in thirty minutes flat. She just needs Max to hold on until then.

"Chloe, she's dead."

"Shut up, Victoria!"

It took her a moment to realize it was Kate that said that, not Victoria.

"I'm sorry, Chloe." Kate continues her voice strained with pain and sorrow. "I'm so sorry, but she's dead. She's not breathing or responding."

"I don't want to hear this. She's not dead. That is a lie."

The rest of the frantic ride is quiet. Eventually, they make it back into the main area of Arcadia Bay, but Chloe didn't feel any less tense. She rushes into the hospital parking lot and slams the brakes in front of the entrance doors.

Both she and Victoria get out right away. She grabs Max while Victoria grabs Kate, then they rush inside. The hospital lobby was quiet and almost entirely empty save for a nurse getting water sitting at the desk. She looks up in surprise when they burst in.

"Help! We need help!" Chloe shouted at the top of her lungs. "My friend had a large machine fell on top of her!"

"And another one here has been shot in the shoulder." Victoria cuts in.

The nurse quickly gets on the phone and says something quickly. Several agonizing minutes later, other nurses begin appearing carrying stretchers. They help assist placing Kate onto one stretcher then wheeling her away.

As one nurse helps Chloe places Max on the stretcher, her eyes widen slightly and she glances up at Chloe before turning her eyes away. She whispers something to another nurse who then begins checking her. A moment later, she sighs and turns to Chloe and Victoria.

"I'm sorry, but your friend is dead."

"No, she isn't." Chloe cries. "I want to wait until a doctor gets here."

"One has been called and is one his way here. We will wait for his confirmation…but your friend…she has no pulse and her blood pressure is nonexistent. If nothing else, she isn't _breathing_."

There is something wet on her face. "She can be resuscitated. We got her here quickly. There's still time!"

The nurse nods in sympathy and whispers something to the other nurse before they began wheeling Max away. Feeling lost and confused, Chloe slumps into one of the chairs putting her face into her hands. She becomes so lost in despair that the rest of the hospital disappears from her mind.

She feels a hand on her shoulder and someone sits beside her. "Chloe, do you have the phone number of Max's parents? I'll call them. Give me the phone number for Kate's parents also. Yours too, for that matter."

"Max isn't dead." Chloe repeats though her voice has lost all emotion. "She isn't."

"Neither is Kate or you. I'm just calling all our parents to let them know we're in the hospital."

"I'll call Vanessa and Ryan myself. I'll also call my mom later." Chloe mutters. "I'll call them to say we're _all_ alright."

"Of course. I…" Victoria takes a deep breath. "Look, we're still not friends or anything. I still hate your guys, but, uh, I know how you feel. This whole detective shit we were playing is fucked now. I didn't sign up to get shot at and see my friends killed over a fucking barn. I wouldn't feel right if it ends here, though. Not like this."

"Get to the point."

"I'm trying to say that, if you want to get together after all this for, like, a comfort outing or some shit like that. I wouldn't mind it. Like I said, I know how bad this can be."

"…how can you know?" Chloe says wiping away at her face. "I lost my fucking best friend a few months ago and now I'm losing another one. This whole fucking town is going to swallow me up after. My mom doesn't give a shit and no one else does either. How could you understand?"

"I _do_ understand." Victoria insists. "I did lose someone else I cared about. In fact, I lost two also."

Confusion comes over Chloe. "Who?"

"A girl named Megan and Rachel." Victoria sighs heavily. "The difference between us is that I caused their deaths. I'm responsible for it. God, I'm such a fuck up."

Chloe wipes at her face again and stares at Victoria. "You…you do care about Rachel? You do care that she's missing."

"I hate her fucking guts too, but God, I also fucking miss her. At the time, I was wishing death on her everyday…and she fucking goes and actually disappear completely." Victoria smiles blandly. "That's my problem, Chloe. People who gets too close to me tend to die off. Become my friend and it'll happen to you too."

Snorting, Chloe turns away. "I don't exactly have a great record of people close to me staying alive either. Aside from Rachel, my dad fucking died in a car accident. Now I might lose Max and add to that list." She sighs. "The only good thing is that my asshole stepdad might catch the curse too." She pauses. "Wait, I take that back. If he really ends up dying out of nowhere, I'll fucking feel guilty."

Victoria chuckles. "Well, would you look at that? Looks like we do have something in common besides being Rachel's bitch. Ain't that right, Chlo?"

Chloe scowls. "We're not friends, so don't act so familiar."

"I know." Victoria gets up off the seat. "Again, though. If you want to get together after this, I wouldn't mind it so much." She turns away and heads down the hall towards where they wheeled Kate. "One thing, though. If you ever bring Megan up in my presence again, I'll fucking cut your throat."

"Likewise with Rachel!" Chloe shouts as Victoria walks off. "God, I just bonded with Victoria. I've hit a new low."

She puts her face back in her hands feeling overwhelming exhaustion, though she didn't want to rest for a minute. Some unaccountable time later, a man hurriedly comes through the door. He glances at Chloe briefly before rushing past down the hair towards where Kate went.

Chloe feels her heart clench. Is he a doctor? Is he the only one coming one? And he's not going to look at Max at all?

She was still staring down the hallway when the intercom comes on alerting all available nurses to come to the ER. A few minutes later, two nurses come from one of the hallways. Chloe recognizes one of them as the one that talked to her about Max.

They were muttering to each other as they rapidly walk away. She didn't catch most of it, but she did catch something about a room number.

Without thinking, she gets up and walks down the hallway they come to looking for the number she heard. When she got there, she walks right into the room not caring about anything.

Inside, she sees a body being covered by a blanket.

Trembling, she walks over and lifts the blanket off the face. Max. Her beautiful visage is so still. In the silence of the room, Chloe stares down at her friend and tears come to her eyes. She pulls a chair from the side up to the bed and sits down.

"H-hey, Max. What's going on?" No response. "I decided something. When this is all over and you're out of the hospital, lets forget all of this. Forget Nathan, forget that fucking barn, and this whole stupid investigation. Yeah, lets forget Rachel too."

"Instead, I think we should leave Arcadia Bay. Together. You and me." Chloe coughs haggardly wiping at her eyes. "We'll go to Los Angeles." She pauses. "No, not Los Angeles. I don't think I like it there. Instead, we'll go to San Francisco. That's your type of place, right? All artsy and stuff."

"I can see it already. You'll be opening an art gallery or something. Is that what photographers do? Or do you guys, like, publish magazines or what? Well, it doesn't matter to me. Whatever you want to do, I want to be there with you."

"I…I think I love you, Max. Please. Please don't leave me."

She pulls the chair up closer waiting for the moment when Max wakes up again and she can say everything she just said to her.


	8. Chapter 08

**Chapter 08**

When Max opens her eyes and notices her three friends nearby, a sense of relief flows through her.

In the daze of pain she was in after having a 500lbs machine fallen on top of her from above, it was hard to think and, even now, she still gets doubt every now and then whether she'll wake up again. That this time will be the time she really dies.

But she's here. Good as new.

She tries to call out to her friends, but her voice wouldn't come out. She's also having trouble moving. A bit of panic comes over her before remembering why she's having these issues. She had been put to sleep with some kind of drug they bought from Frank. Letting out a sigh, Max waits another 15-20 minutes as the effects lift more and more.

Once she felt more in control of her limbs, she slowly sits up surprising Kate who had been sitting beside her.

"Victoria, Chloe! Max's awake!"

Chloe moves over to Max's side as Victoria rings a glass of water. Max takes the glass and drinks everything in two gulps. Now rehydrated and calmer, the effects lift even more and Max's memories begin to come together as a lingering headache fades. This time, she actually giggles to herself as the drug affects how her memory returns.

"Max? Are you alright?" Chloe asks slowly.

"Pretty good, actually."

Grinning uneasily, Chloe jokes, "This drug is damn good. You're grinning like a goof."

She laughs looking forward to seeing Chloe's face when she reveals her good humor is from once again escaping death's clutches, not from the drug.

"You've been knocked out for over an hour, Max." Kate says in concern. "Don't push yourself. Let it come back slowly."

"Don't worry, Kate, I'm fine. In fact, I'm great."

"Well, since you appear to be fine. I suppose now's a good time to do that test." Victoria says after a pause. "I'll go first. When you see mine, Max, _don't_ say-"

"No need to, Victoria. I already know what's on those papers."

"…what?"

Max smiles toothily at her. "I just did a retry. All of you already showed me your papers."

All of their eyes widen at this revelation. Victoria is the first to recover staring at Max intently. Chloe also sits up straighter looking curious and eager obviously excited to see this 'power' she heard of in action. Kate, however, looks concerned.

"Does this…does this mean that you…" She struggles with her words.

Knowing what she is referring to, Max nods, "Yes, I died again, Kate. Don't worry, though, I'm beginning to get used to it. I didn't even panic when waking up this time."

Those words did not reassure Kate at all.

"Ahem." Victoria clears her throat. "Since you did a retry already. I guess it's time to do the test."

Max nods. "Alright. You first, Victoria."

"Price, Kate, please stand at the other side of the room for privacy." Once they moved away, Victoria leans in close.

Cupping her mouth around Victoria's ears, Max whispers, "Your paper says no secrets."

Watching Victoria's eyes, Max notes surprise flit through them confirming her previous belief that, despite her support, Victoria did not entirely believe either. Now, though, her eyes look at Max in amazement as she moves back.

"Chloe?" Max calls.

Her friend hesitates somehow almost fearful, but she walks forward and leans in similarly to Victoria. Once more, Max cups her mouth around Chloe's ears.

"You have a piercing on your labia. The left one, I think?"

Chloe leans back staring at her wide eyed. There's the face she was looking forward to seeing and it makes her giggle again.

"There's no way you could have known that. _Holy_ shit, Max! You have powers!"

She walks back to the other side of the room and slumps against the wall her face still showing disbelief. Kate comes forward unbidden next. Her eyes seem curious and vaguely excited.

"You had a dream where Taylor kissed you." Max whispers.

Kate leans back and nods in confirmation smiling. "That's right. I never doubted you for a moment, Max."

"This is in-fucking-credible." Chloe says as she and Victoria walks over. "Do you two realize what we could _do_ with this power?"

Victoria snorts. "Well, I know we can probably bust open this mystery pretty easily."

"Are you fucking kidding? This goes way beyond that." Chloe responds excitedly. "Max can essentially predict the future with this power. How long can a human stay awake? 2-3 days? With some drugs, we can probably extent that to a week. Maybe two. Can you two imagine Max waking up and then telling you what's going to happen in the next two weeks? She can tell you who's going to win the superbowl in exactly how many points."

Chloe gets up and begins pacing back and forth. "No, wait, I'm thinking too small. She can become fucking president, if she wanted. Make a mistake in a debate or in a poll? No problem, just retry."

"No, still too small. A superhero! How do you beat someone who seems to know your every move? And who you can't kill because she'll just wake up fine again?" Chloe's eyes widen here. "Max, you're basically immortal. You can't die."

She didn't know how to respond to Chloe's excitement. She never really thought what having such a capability meant. Everything her friend says is true too and that particular bit about her immortality is true to an extent.

Something hits her. "Huh, I can't die because I wake up every time I die, right? So can I die of old age?"

Victoria groans. "Please. Lets not discuss the physics of time travel, reincarnation, or whatever this is. I have enough trouble handling just knowing something like this exists."

"Max." Chloe turns to her wide eyed. "How did you get this power?"

"I…don't know. I literally just found out about it three days ago. For all I know, I could have had it my entire life but simply didn't know because, well, I only just started dying recently."

Which is another strange thing in of itself. Max went through 18 years of life without putting herself in much real danger. Then in the span of three days, she gets killed multiple times…one of which involves a machine falling on her and making her bleed out.

Why? Why is this happening?

"Guys, we're forgetting something important, aren't we?" Kate asks hesitantly. "What happened after this point?"

Victoria nods. "Right. Well, Max? What did we do?"

Max smiles. "You guys will be surprised. The first thing we did was break into Nathan's room."

Kate's eyes widened. "B-break into Nathan's room? Really?"

"Yeah, you and Victoria stayed as watch outside while me and Chloe went in. It was actually pretty easy."

Chloe scowls. "Why did we do that first? I would have thought I would argue to look for Rachel first."

"I also wouldn't have thought I would trust Price to go in with you."

"We decided on Chloe because she had the least to lose from getting caught." Max answered Victoria first, then turns to Chloe. "We had no real leads on Rachel. Instead, after we found out about the link between Nathan and Rachel, we agreed to follow on him first."

"…link? What link?"

Max pauses in surprise, then realization hits her. Before the retry, Chloe learned of the link from Victoria but Max interrupted everything this time so Victoria didn't have a chance to explain anything yet…and might never will.

A sense of sadness overcomes her at this realization. There are so many things they learned about each other before this retry and the other ones too. So many moments that could be called bonding. What of Chloe's heart-to-heart with Max in Nathan's room? Victoria's confession of her real feelings towards Kate and her longed for apology?

Up to now, most of what has been lost were negative events. Nathan's shooting, her and Victoria's arguments, her and Chloe's arguments. Now, though, Max is beginning to realize how much good has been lost too.

All of them lost except in the confines of Max's memory.

"Max? Are you okay?"

She snapped out of her reverie to see Chloe looking at her worriedly. She gives a shaky smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Chloe. Sorry, I was just thinking." She clears her throat. "Anyway, the link is that Nathan may have done the same thing to Rachel as Kate. Before her disappearance, she was at a party and acted really weirdly. Just like Kate did. Talking strangely, kissing people, being in a dazed. Then she left the party with Nathan and, later, disappeared."

Chloe stares open mouthed. "What the fuck…"

"I was the one who told you this, wasn't I?" Victoria sighs. "If there was any reason for me to doubt your powers at all…"

"What? You knew this?" Chloe asks angrily. "Why the hell hadn't you said anything before?"

"What? To you? I didn't like you and wouldn't have even told you my birth date."

"To the _police_ , you asshole!" Chloe yells. "From what Max is saying, Nathan is the last person who saw her. He could have been a valuable lead! Why didn't you tell the police Nathan drugged her? Instead, they probably didn't even talk to him!"

Victoria's eyes flash angrily. "One, the police did question Nathan and just about anyone else with any connection to her whatsoever. Two, I didn't realize Rachel was drugged at the time – she's a fucking drug hound so I thought she took it herself plus there is no proof that actually happened. Three, I don't like Rachel and didn't give enough of a shit to care."

Chloe clenches her teeth. "That's something I don't understand about you, Victor. Rachel is an amazing person and everybody loves her. She told me you guys used to be friends too. What the hell happened? Why the hell-"

Max blinks recalling this conversation. They're having the fight about why Victoria hates Rachel again. Huh. So despite the change in events, it seems some things will generally head in the same direction.

"…never bother to tell you?" Victoria asked in surprised, then her face blanks. "You don't know what we were? Holy shit."

Chloe glares at her growing frustrated. She turns around. "Max, did Victoria say what kind of friends they were in this, uh, 'retry'?"

Pausing in surprise at the question, Max purses her lips. Well, Victoria did say…just not in this particular conversation. "Actually, you two had the same argument and it went almost exactly the same. Victoria didn't say anything."

It wasn't exactly a lie, though an omission of truth. Seeing Chloe's frustration, Max certainly felt guilty for doing so, but…this is for the greater good. Victoria trusted Max with that information and keeping it a secret is important. Not just to keep Victoria's trust in her, but if Chloe found out what Victoria's and Rachel's real relationship was like, she would almost certainly be hurt badly.

So this is for the greater good. Even if it does mean she has to betray Chloe.

"Boy, you really are ignorant of many things, aren't you? I already knew that but the depths I've just witness is far more than even I thought." Victoria chuckles maliciously. "Rachel made a complete dick of you."

"What the fuck do you think you're laughing at, Victor?" Chloe bites bitterly. "Why are you always whining about Rachel? Is this why you're so happy that she disappeared? Or maybe the idea that people dying just amuses you?"

Max startles. She knows where this is going. She has to stop it immediately.

"Chloe!" She shouts loudly as she jumps up startling everyone in the room. "There's something else I need to reveal, but it's for you ears only. Please come with me to the showers."

"M-Max?"

She walks out expecting Chloe to follow her. Sure enough, as she walks down the hallway slowly, she hears someone comes out of her room and follow behind. Glancing over her shoulders, she sighs in relief seeing that it's Chloe.

When they got to the shower, she checks around to make sure it's empty then turns to Chloe.

"In my retry, you both had this argument and I know how it's going to go. First, I want to ask you to never bring up Megan. Please."

"Megan? Wha-?" Chloe looks confused but then her eyes light up in realization. "That name I heard…"

"Yes, the name you heard while you were listening to Victoria and me outside her room."

Silence. "Did I tell you all this or did you found out somehow?"

"You told me. You and Victoria got into a bad fight. You accidentally gave me a bloody nose in the process."

Chloe falters. "O-oh. I'm sorry, Max. I didn't-"

"No, it's alright. I just want you to know that Megan is a _very_ big deal to Victoria, so don't ever bring up that name in her presence, okay? It would be like me using your dad to hurt you."

"Right." She says looking penitent despite the fact that the argument never actually happened. "I swear I won't do it."

"Good. Thank you, Chloe."

Max pauses giving some thought to her next course of action. She already has an idea of what she wanted to do, but wasn't sure how to go about it. Left with little answers, she decides to go for broke.

"By the way, there is one other thing."

She walks over, leans up, and kisses Chloe on the lips. When she pulls away, Chloe is heavily blushing looking surprised.

"Max…what? What was that? I don't understand."

"I love you, Chloe. Please always stay by my side."

Chloe opens and closes her mouth a few times looking completely lost for words. Her blush deepens until her face looks like a tomato. At last, she lets out a sigh.

"God, I wish I knew what happened in this retry of yours."

"A lot of things, Chloe. I'll tell you all you want to know, but the important thing is that I think I understand you a lot better now than I did before. Now then, let us go back?"

"Oh right, sure."

They leave the shower and head back to her room. When they walked in, Victoria looks suspiciously at the two of them as if unsure of how to take their absence and what kind of conversation they may have had.

She notices the goofy smile on Chloe's face and becomes even more suspicious.

"Finished with this top secret conversation? Alrigth. If you're done throwing a tantrum, Price, I would like to hear what happens next. What did you find in Nathan's room, Max?"

Clearing her throat, Max continues recalling the events. "Inside his room, we found-"

She loses attention suddenly again realizing in horror that Nathan still has the photo. That sick photo he took of Chloe. She has to get it back. _She has to_. She can't let him keep that photo.

Max shakes her head. "Sorry. Anyway, inside his room, we found a diary behind his couch. The diary is mostly nonsense, but there were a few interesting tidbits. One page had Rachel's and Kate's name circled.

Kate purses her lips in distaste but says nothing.

"One of the biggest pages has him ranting about David Madsen spying on him and giving him the third degree."

"Step-douche did that?" Chloe asks surprised. "Looks like he's good for something, after all."

"Yeah, he did it real bad too. Nathan had to go to Principal Wells to get David off his back. Anyway, there was also one last thing we found before we left. Nathan had an entry where he complained about a barn."

"A barn?" Victoria repeats furrowing her eyebrows.

Max nods. "It was only a single line, but I had a hunch about it and you all played along. Thanks to Kate using GPS maps, we were able to locate a barn we thought might belong to him. Well, we searched…and we did find something pretty significant."

"It turns out we stumbled onto a barn owned by the Prescott family. There were news clippings, photos, and letters all belonging to members of the Prescotts."

"So what was important about them?" Kate asks.

"Well…nothing really. They were just random saved scraps. It was really dark by the time we got there and we didn't really find anything besides those stuff." Here, Max lets out a sigh. "Something else happened, though, that was much more important. As we were searching, another car pulls up and saw our car."

"We quickly all ran and hide. Two men came in trying to find us and they had a gun. They intended to kill us. They eventually found Chloe in her hiding place. Things just went bad from there."

"One of them shot off his gun and hits this machine on a badly decayed platform. Well, the machine fell over…and landed on me." Kate covers her mouth in horror. "All hell broke loose. They discovered me and were threatening Chloe. That's when Victoria came out and shot one of them."

Victoria's eyes widen and her mouth drops open. She wanted to refute this saying she wouldn't shoot someone, but considering Max went through the experience, she _must_ have done it.

"We tried to escape and take me to a hospital, but as we ran out, the guy who Victoria shot got his gun back and shot at us. We then got into a firefight." Max intentionally leaves out the part about Kate getting shot figuring it'll do more harm than good. "At that point, I died and went back."

A pregnant silence filled the room. Victoria is the first to break it. "Jesus Christ, Max."

"That sounds more like some sort of action movie than something in real life." Chloe mutters. "I can't believe we went through all of that. Just from searching a fucking barn. That didn't even have anything!"

"No, we did find out something, Chloe. Something big, I think."

"What?"

"Those two men. They didn't find us right away. Before they did so, they were talking to themselves and they said a lot of things. To begin, they're familiar with Nathan and it sounded like he goes to this barn enough for them to think it might have been him at first. Also, they said something about 'Mr. Prescott' will be angry at them if they didn't find us."

"Mr. Prescott." Victoria repeats wide eyed. "As in Sean Prescott? Nathan's dad?"

"They didn't say a first name, but I guess so."

Victoria swallows. "We didn't actually find anything in the barn besides news clippings and letters, right?" Max nods. "Then it might just be something innocent. Maybe the Prescotts just don't like squatters on their property or something."

Chloe snorts. "You sound afraid, Victoria. Want to protect your boytoy's daddy too?"

"I don't want Sean Prescott involved-" Victoria snarls. "-because he is someone we don't want to fuck with. You seen the kind of shit Nathan can get up to. What do you think someone like his father does? It'll make your head spin. I only got an inkling of it from the few times I visited Nathan's house and even I get nervous."

"Fuck that! If something happened to Rachel and this prick is involved, I'll be all over him and I don't give a shit what anyone thinks or what happens!"

"Max just said a couple of his goons intended to kill us. _That_ is what might happen. Do you still not care, Price?" Victoria sneers.

Chloe falters here, but she takes a deep breath. "I don't want to die, but Rachel is too important to me to just let go, Victoria. I _need_ to find out what happened to her and get her justice if something terrible happened."

Victoria blinks at the words scowling, "That's…I can respect that, Price. Still, like I said, it might just be nothing. After all, nothing was found there."

"But that can't be true." Chloe sighs. "If you have trespassers on property you don't give a shit about, you call the cops. You don't hire guys to _kill_ trespassers…unless there is something there that absolutely must not get out. Whatever it is, we simply haven't found it."

Victoria grimaces knowing Chloe is right. "Even if that is true, unless we know what we're looking for, we might never find out."

"God…" Chloe sighs walking over to sit on the couch.

As the argument dies away, Max figures this might be the time to drop the next bombshell, "There is something else." When they turned to her, she continues. "The men also mentioned someone named Jefferson." Even before she finishes, Max sees Victoria losing all color in her face. "They didn't say a first name, but, well, there's only one Jefferson I know of who's connected to Nathan."

"No, no, it's not fucking possible." Victoria says plainly. "And if it is, all that proves is that this really is just something innocent. There is simply no fucking way he can be involved in something that shady."

"What are you two talking about?" Chloe asks. "Wait, I know this name. This guy…I think he was Rachel's teacher. He's also your teacher, isn't he, Max?

"Right." Max nods. "He's my, Victoria's, and Kate's photography teacher."

"Your fucking teacher is in on this too? Are you shitting me?"

"No!" Victoria says fiercely. "It's impossible. Mark is simply not that type of person."

Kate hesitates. "It does seem unlikely. I've never seen him do anything but act professional and he is really nice to me."

"I find it hard to believe too." Max begins hesitantly. "But they _did_ say his name. Twice."

"What were they saying?" Kate asks.

"Nothing, really. They just said his name in passing. They were wondering if Victoria's car was actually Jefferson's. They didn't say anything in detail." Max bites her lips. "Lets not jump to conclusions just yet, though. We should wait until we have more details."

"I already have some pretty damning conclusions." Chloe says. "But I'll save them until I can get the people I accuse to admit it." She sighs. "Thank God for your powers, Max. We found all this shit out and avoided a gun fight. This 'retry' shit fucking rocks!"

"Yeah, we owe you a big deal." Victoria smiles. "I can't believe I actually get to experience something supernatural like this. If I live to be 100, I don't think I'll even see anything close to it again."

Blushing furiously, Max smiles, "Stop it, guys. Like I said before, using this power is just obvious. I don't think I really would have been able to get as far as I did without you guys."

Chloe grins. "So Super Max, what do we do next? We still have plenty of daylight."

"Right. I think we can follow the next lead. Aside from the barn thing, Nathan's rant about David Madsen is the other thing we have to go on. I'm thinking David might have some info on Nathan."

"If I know step-douche as well as I think I do, he probably has a lot more." Chloe says darkly. "You're right, though. That is our biggest lead. If we can find out all that shit from going to a barn on a hunch, I bet whatever we find with step-ass will be the fucking jackpot."

"Before we start jumping for joy…" Victoria begins blandly. "how exactly are we going to get this David to tell us what he knows?"

Max bites her lower lips. "That is the tough part. I was thinking of just asking him."

Chloe cringes. "You don't know step-douche like I do, Max. We're going to need a better plan."

"I'm willing to…but what other methods do we have?"

"I'm sure that jackass has _something_ hidden. A photo, a wannabe police file, I don't know! But there's just no way someone like him doesn't."

Max frowns, but consents hesitantly. "Alright, I'm game. How do we find these things, though? Does David have some kind office? Filing cabinet? Man-cave?"

"Our garage. He works a lot in it and keeps most of his stuff in there. Me and mom don't usually bother him in there, but I've been in there a few times and it looks like it might have some stuff."

"Looks like that's where we'll try that then." Max says. "All we have to do is find an opportunity to get to it."

Victoria looks thoughtful. "David Madsen is your stepfather, right, Price? I remember Max mentioning that. So we don't have to sneak around this time. We'll just come over and call it a sleepover."

Chloe looks taken back. "Uh, you mean all of you?"

"Yes, all of us." Victoria narrows her eyes. "What did you think?"

"Well, we don't need _that_ many people for this lead. I was thinking Max and me can do it alone."

"I want to come along too. After all, if you find information, I want to know about it right away. Besides, you'll need out help. If you're going to snoop around, you'll need him to be distracted, won't you? And if you decide to convince him to give up the info, who here is best at doing that? I think I'm the most qualified."

"She does have a point, Chloe." Max says grinning. "It would be helpful to us."

Clenching her teeth, Chloe nods grudgingly. "You get the floor, though."

"One thing." Max cuts in. "Kate, I don't want you coming along with us."

Kate is taken back and she stares at Max with hurt. "M-Max? Why?"

Surprisingly, Victoria comes to Kate's defense, "I think Kate can help too. The more people to be on lookout and distract, the better, right?"

"It's not that. It's…" She takes a deep breath. "You remember how I mentioned before that I did a retry with Chloe after we stayed together?" When they nodded, she continues, "Well, before the retry, I had met David downstairs alone and he started questioning me. Kate, he thinks you're a drug runner."

Victoria chokes on her own disbelief as Kate's eyes nearly turn into saucers.

"W-what? Why the hell would he think something like that?" Victoria cries.

"He said he has reasons to believe it, but he didn't say what those reasons were. I can't even imagine what it could be."

Chloe snorts. "His reason is because his ass told him so and that's all the reason he needs."

"All the same, I don't want Kate going there when David is like that. He will definitely get on her case, I know it. So we'll-"

"I want to go."

Max reels at the declaration. "Kate?"

"I want to go, Max." Kate says sitting straighter trying to assert herself. "I told you before – I don't want to be a coward all the time. If I am to find out the truth about what happened to be, I need to be brave. If I am, then, God willing, I will find the truth."

Max still looked really troubled by the idea and she bites her lips not responding.

"Max." Victoria calls. "I'll protect her."

Kate quirks her head in a little surprise. "Victoria?"

"Consider it a bit of repayment for…you know. If David tries to get on your case, I'll jump in."

"Count me in too." Chloe says. "That bastard's the reason Rachel stopped coming to my house and the reason I'm nervous about bringing anyone else over. If he tries anything, call me and I'll kick his ass."

Smiling warmly, Kate nods, "Thank you. Both of you."

The scene does a lot to reassure Max and it even makes it feel fuzzy inside. Two girls who have little in common with each other have just made a pact to protect the smallest one and they're standing beside her like tough bigger sisters. It gets to Max somewhere deep inside. The three new friends.

She quietly sneaks over to her school bag and takes out her camera. Without risking the time loss in framing the shot and losing it as a result, she snaps a photo. The flash of light gets all their attention and Victoria groans good-naturedly.

When the photo comes out and developed, Max stares at it lovingly. Despite her not taking the effort to do so, the photo was still framed nearly perfectly. She can still feel their feelings even in the shot. This will be one of her most precious, prized possessions.

She takes that photo and the other from her bag and archives it in her photo binder.

"So Max, do I get to go?" Kate asks.

"With two mama bears protecting you? I'm willing to now." Max smiles earning her a smile in return.

"Alright, ladies, to my truck!" Chloe says getting up.

" _No_." Victoria sneers. "To my car. I don't need to get grease on my cashmere from sitting in your rust bucket, Price."

"Oh, fuck off, Victor."

Well, perhaps not friends yet, but closer than before.

"Ahem, Victoria, Kate? Do you two mind going ahead and waiting at the car? I have to discuss something with Chloe and it might take an half hour or so?"

"An half hour discussion? After you already had one in the shower?" Victoria looks curiously at Max. "…alright, but try to be quicker."

She went ahead and Kate follows after a moment looking at Max over her shoulders. When they're a good distance away, Max turns to Chloe who is staring at her questioningly.

"So…what's up? Going to confess your love?"

Max smiles. "Not yet. There is something else I didn't mention that we _have_ to do, Chloe, and it's in Nathan's room…"

As promised, they arrived thirty minutes later and Chloe has the photo Nathan took of her with him. They jump into Victoria's already running car.

"Finished?" Victoria asks.

"Mm-hmm. Sorry to keep you both waiting."

"Are we going to get an explanation of what happened?"

"Sorry, Victoria. It's a private thing between Chloe and I."

Victoria scowls, but says nothing. Chloe takes this opportunity to lean forward and begin giving her directions to her house. Without a beat, Victoria speeds away from Blackwell.

When they arrived at the Price household, Max braces herself for whatever tribulations might come up. The first time she came here, there was an explosive argument that ended with plates of food on the walls and floor plus tears all around. This time, she will prepare for the worst.

She is pretty sure Victoria can handle it; in fact, she might even handle it better than Max did. Kate, on the other hand, is less of a sure factor, especially if David's feelings about her come into effect. Of course, Chloe is experienced, ready, and prepared. Hell, she is likely to be one half of the instigators for it.

They get out of the car and Chloe leads the way this time. She unlocks the door, opens it a notch, and looked prime to kick it open like last time when she hesitates, glances at the rest of them, and goes for properly opening it instead. Max lets out a relieved sigh.

"I'm home." Chloe calls out in a mild voice.

"Hm, you sound a little different, Chloe." Joyce says coming out of the kitchen. She stops upon seeing everyone. "Well, would you look at this? Chloe, you're making friends at quick pace, aren't you?" She smiles at Max. "It must be your work, honey."

"I merely lure them in with my looks. Chloe does the rest." Max replies smiling. "By the way, Joyce, this is our friends Victoria and Kate."

"Well, girls, please come in and have a seat in our living room."

The four of them take off their shoes and walk in. As Joyce asks, they take a seat at the dinner table.

"Mom, they're staying over tonight, alright?"

"All four?" Joyce asks in surprise. "That's fine. We've got sleeping bags tucked away, so you girls feel free to use it. Anyway, dinner will be ready soon. Be patient!"

Joyce walks off and, a moment later, her voice rings out, "David, we have guests! Can you bring two extra chairs?"

"Roger that!"

Victoria glances around the living room making a critical assessment with her eyes. "Nice place, Price."

"What, missing your mansion already?

"I complimented you." Victoria says glaring.

"I'm sure it was sincere, Victor."

" _Guys_." Max says exasperatedly. "We're supposed to be good friends, remember? Victoria, Chloe, _please_ be nice to each other. Start by using your proper names."

Chloe's lips tighten. "Thank you for the compliment, Victoria."

"Of course, Chloe."

Whatever tensions the two had towards each other were quickly forgotten when David Madsen steps into the room carrying two chairs and he freezes when his eyes land on Kate. To Max's surprise, his eyes also narrows on Victoria.

Having heard nothing from Victoria about any encounters with David, Max can only assume this is just his natural reaction to having strangers in his home. After all, he didn't react all too kindly to Max the first time either.

Victoria stands up and gives a winning smile, "Good afternoon, sir. My name is Victoria Chase. It's nice to meet you."

Seeing this, Kate follows her example, though her introduction ends up having more stuttering and less eye contact. "I'm Kate Marsh, Max's friend. Nice to meet you."

David gives a tight smile. "I'm David Madsen. You girls may have seen me from time to time on Blackwell's campus as I'm the head security guard. It's nice to have you both in my home tonight, Victoria, Kate."

He places the two chairs down on two opened sides then takes a seat at one.

"So Joyce tells me that everyone is planning to stay over tonight?"

"I hope it's not too much trouble, sir?"

"No need for the formalities, Victoria. Please be at ease." David says. "And it's no trouble at all. How long have you and Kate been friends with our Chloe here? I am familiar with Max but I believe this is the first time you two have come over?"

Chloe suddenly jumps in. "They're my friends from before I left Blackwell. We talked mostly off-campus back then and didn't know each other real well, but I recently discovered that that they're also friends with Max here. I figure it's time we all got to know each other."

The other two girls dutifully nod, of course. David continues to smile, though it never reaches his eyes.

"Well, any friend of Chloe – and Max – is welcomed here, of course. We're happy to have you both here."

This is all going very well, Max thought. She wonders if David is now acting much more cautious after what happened last time or if Joyce had said something to him a moment ago.

It's a terrible time to do so, really. Now they might actually need to grill him for information, so having him being polite and closed off is going to be a problem. Before, despite his antagonism, he was basically an open well of information. Thinking about it in hindsight, David revealed a shocking amount of information just arguing: his thoughts on Rachel, a possible link between her and Frank Bowers, a hint about information he may have about Kate's party incident.

Max had been too distraught at the time to think on it much, but knowing what she does now, she realized just how big a source of information someone like David could be. The problem is how to get him to reveal it or, better, find out if he keeps physical files of information and where.

Joyce walks in carrying plates of food, glances warily at David and Chloe, then gives a smile to everyone else. She places two plates – beef pasta, some meatballs, and a side of baked potatoes – in front of Victoria and Kate, then make two more trips to the kitchen to come back with the other plates for Max, Chloe, David, and herself.

Prayers are said once more and then dinner begins.

"So Victoria, is it?" Joyce says looking at her. "My, I never knew Chloe had such a fashionable looking friend. You looked like someone out of Vogue!"

Victoria smiles and nod. "Thank you, ma'am. I do try my best."

"No need for such formalities, dear. All of you may call me Joyce."

"Joyce it is then."

"And you are Kate, right? You look like a fine girl." Joyce asks looking at the cross on her neck.

"Thank you, Joyce."

"So tell me, how did the two of you meet Chloe? Most of the people I saw her with are usually much more similar to her. Not that I don't like both of you very much, but neither of you are like my Chloe at all."

Victoria quickly answers, "Well, we're really more Max's friends and we became friends with Chloe through her." It is mostly the truth. "The three of us are in the photography program at Blackwell and that's how we met. Before that, we were mostly just acquaintances with Chloe."

She added that last part to keep the story Chloe made up intact, though David hardly looked like he even cared.

Joyce smiles. "I should have known. Out of all of Chloe's friends, Max also stands out."

"If I may ask…" David begins immediately grabbing all attention. "how _did_ you become friends with Max, Victoria? I know you're in the photography program with her and Jefferson is both your teacher, but what brought about the friendship?"

Vaguely, Max gets the sense that David knows more than he lets on. Is it possible he saw through their ruse already? Or did he know enough of them to never believe it to begin with?

"I think I was the first to initiate conversation." Victoria says slowly. "She is a bit unique in our class, you see. Most of us use DSLRs, but she alone uses an old fashion Polaroid camera. I thought it was fascinating, so I approached her, asked about it, and we became friends after we got to talking."

David nods pleasantly. "That is interesting."

"I…" Victoria leans forward a bit. "find your work fascinating too, Mr. Madsen." He did not offer usage of his first name like Joyce. "It must be tough watching over a campus like Blackwell. How do you do it?"

"Nothing to it, really. Teamwork, diligence, and willingness are really all that's needed. If, for example, a student is bullying another student, we might break it up and ask others to keep an eye out on the students involved. If any of us sees something, we inform the others then we might collectively approach the principal about the issue. It's something anyone can do, really."

The topic makes Victoria's smile strain. Max also wonders if the topic is intentional. If it is, then she has plenty of questions for David about why he hasn't broken up Kate's bullying or approach the principal about it.

"Don't be modest. That can't be all there is to it. If you have a lot of students with problems or maybe some students with a lot of problems, teamwork can't do everything. How do you keep track of all the students and their issues?"

Max stops eating for a minute to pay attention. The other girls do too as they realize Victoria is probing for information.

David smiles. "It's not nearly that complicated. We really just focus on the bigger problems until they're solved then try to move on to the others. There are times when we miss the smaller problems too because we can and do sometimes get disorganized."

Victoria returns the smile, but internally, she is frustrated at David's blocking of her attempts to gather information. Seeing that flattery isn't getting her anywhere, she leaves off the topic.

The rest of dinner is mild and filled with smalltalk mostly led by Joyce and Victoria. When everyone was finished and the plates are being cleared, Max could also swear she along with the entire Price household were relieved no fight broke out and everyone was generally cordial.

Helping to clear the table, Victoria also offers to help with the washing which Joyce accepts gratefully. David quietly leaves to go into the garage where Chloe said he likes to keep 'some stuff'…which could be anything. As far as Max knows, it could be full of tools, guns, and the only secrets around may be David's hidden stash of pornography.

Chloe heads up towards her room and Max and Kate follows. Inside her room, Chloe falls face forward onto the bed letting out a sigh. Max takes the chair at her desk while Kate sits on the floor beside her.

"God, Victoria's sucking up is fucking pissing me off. _'Don't be modest, sir', 'Let me help you with the dishes, Joyce'_. Goddamn it."

"She's trying to get in good with David to get him to reveal something." Max clarifies. "Easiest way to do that is flattery, I guess."

"It doesn't look like it's doing shit."

"I think David doesn't trust her." Kate says thoughtfully. "Did you see the way his eyes narrow at Victoria? Does he know her too?"

Max shakes her head. "I didn't know he did, but you're right. I saw that too. What does it all mean?"

Chloe chuckles. "If he thinks Kate is a drug runner, I can only imagine what he thinks Victoria is up to."

The sound of footsteps stops everyone and, a moment later, Victoria comes in. She stops and stares around the room in distaste even wrinkling her nose as if she smells something horrible. Seeing how often she commented on Chloe's odor, this room may well have been a far stronger concentration of the scent she hates.

Shaking it off, she goes to stand beside Kate and Max, "So how will we do this?"

"The first thing is that we should create a save point here." Max says.

"Is it really necessary?" Victoria asks. "We're snooping on Price's…sorry, _Chloe's_ stepfather, but I don't think he'll do anything other than yell at us if we get caught. Actually, he might ban us from the house but that's a benefit if you ask me."

"Thanks, Victoria." Chloe says glaring at Victoria.

"We need it." Max nods. "We were only able to get two real leads from Nathan: the barn and David. We already checked out the barn and we found out some things, but nothing really concrete or valuable. If we lose this lead, we'll have little else to go on."

Scowling, Chloe says, "You're right. It might be a good idea to 'save the game' here."

Kate, who had been quiet up to then, looks over in concern. "Max, you restart by dying. I don't think it is likely that Mr. Madsen is going to kill you. So even if things go bad, how exactly will this help?"

She hesitates. Actually, since the whole barn shootout, an idea has been coming to her over and over again. It's not a pretty idea, though, and she is wondering if she should say what has been on her mind. Before she could get to it, Victoria's eyes widen and she looks over in surprise.

"No way…you were planning to kill yourself, weren't you?"

Kate's mouth opens in shock and she snaps her head to Max waiting for her to deny it. The continued hesitation gives her away. " _Max!_ "

"No." Chloe says sitting up immediately. "I went along with your drug plan and that's as far as I go. We are not doing this."

" _Guys._ " Max pleads. "What's the difference between me getting shot and this?"

"There's a big difference, Max." Chloe says. "If you're reaching a point where you can comfortably kill yourself and over something this fucking trivial, we're obviously going too far."

"But I'm immortal, remember? It's not like I'm really killing myself."

Chloe hesitate unsure how to respond, but Victoria cuts in. "Your body is renewed with each retry, but your _mind_ is not. It remains the same. There must be some kind of trauma that we're not seeing yet and you're not aware of."

Another hesitation and her eyes give her away. "There is nothing you're aware of, right, Max?"

She looks up and all three are watching her intently. "There…was one thing. After the retry with Chloe, I, uh, started seeing blood. I saw blood on her jeans and on my face, but it was just that one time."

Surprised, Chloe says, "Wait, I remember this. You were picking out my clothes and then you began shaking out of nowhere. You were seeing that?"

"Well…I…"

"That's it." Victoria says firmly. "No more. From now on, we only use it when the consequences are too big otherwise."

"Which will be often." Max whispers audibly. "Am I the only one who finds it strange? I've died more times in the past few days than in…well, ever. Am I even really doing anything that dangerous? It seems like the universe is trying to kill me."

There is a moment of silence.

"She's right, you know." Chloe says. "Getting shot in the bathroom by a lunatic, then dying in a car accident caused by a fucking deer, then dying in a barn after having something fallen on her? Who the hell does this happen to? Maybe soldiers fighting in a war, but sure as hell not high school students in a sleepy little town like Arcadia Bay."

"Maybe…" Kate begins wide eyed. "Maybe it's a kind of message?"

Victoria stares at her. "Message?"

"Yeah, like…like a message from heaven or something saying that…well, you know how all these things seem to focus around Max? It can't be a coincidence that Max is caught in every fatal incident that occurred so far. Maybe heaven is saying that these powers of hers are an abomination."

"Even if that was true, Kate, 'heaven' is the one that gave her these powers to begin with. I'm pretty sure Max didn't perform some kind of witch ritual to get it."

"I don't know if I believe in this stuff…" Chloe says. "but if it were true, then maybe Max was given this power to _avoid_ those kind of situations."

"And get fucked up mentally while doing so?" Victoria asks.

Max flinches at that. It's true that the blood incident was disturbing and the fact that she's no longer bothered like she used to be after waking up from a retry might be something to worry about…but otherwise, she felt fine. She didn't feel 'fucked up' mentally.

"Guys, we're getting sidetracked." Max says. "Lets just stick to trying to get the info from David."

"We're not doing the retry thing here, Max." Victoria says.

Biting her lips, she nods, "Alright, we won't. I promise. That just means we'll have to plan out our strategy that much better then because failing here might be a big loss for us."

Victoria sighs looking out the window. "Anybody have any ideas?"

Silence again. Max briefly wonders if they'll just have to wing it until Chloe clears her throat.

"I think I may know what to do. I said before that step-douche likes to keep things in his garage. Well, he also likes to keep a lot of things locked. He's not fond of combinations or long passwords, though, so you may be able to guess some of them."

"How long are these passwords exactly?" Victoria asks skeptically.

"One locker has, like, a four number password lock. His laptop, I'm not sure, but he also keep some of the cabinets locked using those easy three number locks."

"Chloe, assuming the numbers start at zero, the four number lock have ten thousand different possible combinations. The three number locks have a thousand."

"It doesn't take that long to change a single digit and try the lock." Chloe responds aggravated. "Maybe ten minutes? The four digit one will take a little longer, but not too bad, I think."

"A _little_ longer? Did you forget that the four digit lock has ten times the possible combinations? Multiply 'ten minutes' by ten, Chloe, or did you flunk math too?"

Chloe scowls. "Alright, so it'll be much longer. We'll just have to find some clue in the garage that might give the lock combination."

"How many three digit locks are there?"

"I think three cabinets have those locks."

"So it'll take a half hour just to get through them?"

"Not even. I have the combination to one of them already."

Victoria looks at Chloe suspiciously. "How do you have this?"

"How do you think? I tested out the combinations until I stumbled onto the right one."

"Why, though?"

"Does it matter why, Victor?" Chloe snaps. "The point is that I have it and it'll save us some time."

Scowling, Victoria goes back to the subject. "It does help, but I assume that only the laptop and that locker with the better lock are the ones with the real good stuff in it. The other ones use three digit locks, so they might not have anything at all."

"They _have_ to have something." Chloe retorts. "Otherwise, he wouldn't bother locking them at all. Besides, those things cost $40 at the hardware store and weigh like a pound. Not the kind of locks you'd buy for things you don't care about, right?"

"I suppose not."

Seeing the bickering die down, Max cuts in, "Alright, I think we have a good idea of what will be there and how we might have to bypass it. There's still the problem of David himself, though. We'll have to wait until it's really late and he's asleep."

"No good." Chloe says shaking her head. "He locks the door to the garage late at night…and _that_ lock uses a key so we won't be guessing anything there. If we're to search his stuff out, the best time is in an hour or two. Joyce will be asleep first, he will be working late, and we'll have to sneak in while he's off doing something else in the house"

"I…don't think I can work that quickly." Max says doubtfully.

"That's where we come in." Victoria says. "We will provide a distraction and try to keep David away from the garage while you work."

"See, Max? We got you covered." Chloe says.

"I still don't think I can do it." She says. "How long will it take me to finally open the lockers _and_ search its contents while finding the important information?"

Victoria furrows her eyebrows in thought. "The longest part will be getting through the locks. Once you get into the contents, don't bother searching. Take as many clear photos with your phone as possible, then put everything back. Sounds good?"

Pausing to think it over a moment, Max eventually nods.

"Great. Chloe, you said Joyce will be asleep in an hour and David will be working, right?" At her nodding, Victoria continues. "We'll need a few bits of distractions and I think I have some ideas."

"First, I'll head down and try to engage him in conversation – I think he'll be into that new security system I've been hearing about. If he tries to end the conversation and go back to the garage, though, I'll give a signal. I'll say 'Please don't go yet'. Got it? 'Please don't go yet'. I'll say it loudly and twice if no one comes."

"Once I say the signal, I'll need you, Chloe, to come running in to continue the distraction."

"What the hell am I suppose to do?"

"Think of something." Victoria snaps. "We must do whatever it takes to keep David away from the garage until Max comes out."

"Um, what about me?" Kate asks timidly.

Victoria looks her. "You can be our third distraction. Chloe can use the same signal I set. Once you hear it from her voice, come down to distract him too."

She nods. "Got it. I'll do my best to help you, Max."

Smiling at the three of them, Max replies, "Thanks, guys."

Chloe gets up sighing. "Alright, we start in one hour, right? I gotta go take a drag, so I'll come back around then."

Max watches her go. Was it just her imagination or did her shoulders slump a little? She glances at the other two wondering if they notice that too.

Victoria had pulled out her cell phone and is typing something into it likely not noticing. She realizes how futile it is to look to her to notice as Victoria likely does not care anyway. Kate was looking around the room examining it not noticing either.

Kate says, "I'm going to go get the sleeping bags from Joyce, alright? I'll be back."

"Actually-" Victoria says putting her phone away. "let me come with you. If they have multiple ones, I want to pick. Plus, it would be good to become familiar with the layout of this place."

The two leaves to do so. Max, meanwhile, decides to go out and look for Chloe still feeling concern. She spotted a bob of blue hair peeking from the bottom of the kitchen window. Heading out through the glass doorway in the living room, she takes the corner outside and immediately sees Chloe leaning against the side of the house with an unlit cigarette in her mouth.

Looking over, Chloe gives a small grin. She slides down until she is sitting against the wall then pats the spot besides her. Max gladly takes the invitation to come sit.

"Hey Chloe, are you alright? I thought you looked a little sad when leaving."

"Hm, really?" Chloe says without thought. "I guess I was just thinking."

"…about Rachel?"

"That too." She nods. "But also a bunch of other things. This week has been fucked up, Max. That whole thing with Nathan, your powers, and now our Nancy Drew and crew adventures. What the hell next?"

"I know how you feel." Max laughs lightly. "I said the same thing to Warren, a friend of mine. All of us noticed the same, I think. This whole week feels more like something out of a movie or video game than real life."

The two of them fall into a companionable silence. Chloe glances at Max out of the corner of her eyes a few times smiling as the latter's eyes flit around taking in the view.

"I, uh, I'm glad you're here, Max. With me. We haven't had much time to talk about it, but I really felt a lot better since you came back into my life, you know."

Nodding, Max says, "I feel the same, Chloe. I just wish we could have reconnected without all of this drama."

"Same here, girl, but I'll take what I can get. We've only met again, like, three days ago and I've been wanting to catch up with you a lot."

A light turns on inside of Max's head as she remembers the retry. "Oh right, you wanted to see the lighthouse again, eat at the Two Whales, and go to your junkyard, right?"

"Huh? Did I say all this already?"

Blushing, Max says, "Sort of. We talked in the retry in Nathan's room."

"We had a heart to heart while ransacking his room? Damn." Chloe says grinning. "Still, I wish I could have been part of that conversation. Well, I mean as I am now, not as…some past me…that never was…"

"I get it, Chloe." Max says sobering. "It's feels like there were so many moments we…well, _I_ had with your guys that is now missing. Really important moments, but also little moments that add up. If they were still around, I think we'd all be a lot closer."

"We'd also be dead, wouldn't we?"

"Yeah, we would. So I would gladly trade them for you all being alive. Still, it would be nice if we all can have some moments to ourselves without me retrying and losing it all. I want for us to get closer."

There is a strangely pregnant silence that makes Max glance over. Chloe is staring up at a nearby house with a look as if thinking something.

"Do you really want to?" Chloe asks eventually. "Because I guess now would be the best time to do it. After all, no risk of death any time soon, right?" Another pause. "Max, what did you mean back there at Blackwell? You, uh, well, you kissed me. You also asked me to stay by your side. What did you mean?"

There was a moment of silence. Chloe's demeanor drops thinking she may have brought up something she shouldn't. She was just going to let it drop when Max returns with an unexpected response.

"Chloe, I'm going to ask you something and I need you to be honest with me. Do you love me?"

Chloe looks at her. "I'm guessing you don't mean in a friends kind of way."

"No. I mean love-love."

Biting her lips and looking conflicted, Chloe stutters, "I…don't know, Max. There are times when I-" A slight blush comes over her face. "-when I look at you a little too much even for my own liking. Other times, I want to grab you and run away from Arcadia Bay forgetting all the shit I have to deal with here."

"I don't know, Max. Is that love?"

"I don't think I can say for you, Chloe." Max smiles lightly. "But I'll tell you what – _I_ love you." Chloe stiffens at this. "That's why I kissed you and asked you to stay by my side. Because I love you."

Saying that turned out to be much easier than Max had expected. Of course, she did cheat. In the retry, Chloe basically declared her feelings (even if hesitantly and clumsily) first so she already knew how she felt.

She may look at this as a confession, but the truth is Max is really just returning the feelings that were already there.

Chloe's mouth opens and closes her eyes still wide. "M-Maxster, you can't just drop this bomb on me out of nowhere. I…I don't know…I'm not sure…"

"It's alright, Chloe. Take all the time you need. I know you're still thinking about Rachel, so I'll give you time to move on. I'm patient."

Furrowing her eyebrows, Chloe sighs, "It's not that. It's just I'm so surprised. Rachel has nothing to do with it." She pause a moment. "Maybe…I guess you might be wondering why I've been so desperately searching for Rachel."

Max's heart speeds up a little. Chloe is going to talk about Rachel Amber. The mysterious girl who everyone seems to have a different opinion of will now have another side of her opened.

"She was my girlfriend, Max. We were lovers." Chloe lets out a small sign. "We met at Blackwell back when I was still attending. I had approached her at first because I liked some of these weird, spiritual accessories she wore and we became friends."

"I can't even really remember how anymore, but at some point, we started getting close. Like, really close. I hanged out with her all the time, we went to parties together, and I friended her on social media."

Briefly, Max wonders if this is the point where Victoria discovered Chloe or whether it had come afterwards. How long had Chloe and Rachel known each other before Victoria saw it?

Smiling fondly, Chloe recalls, "I fell in love with her. She was such an exciting person and so _free_. She didn't care what anyone thought of her and she did everything with such complete confidence that it's hard to think she hadn't done it many times before."

"She's the reason I look the way I do now." Chloe laughs. "She made a comment that blue hair would look really good on me, so I up and got it. I got the tattoos for the same reason. Well, I had like one before but it was so small that it wasn't even worth it. Then I met her and I suddenly look like a walking graffiti canvas."

"Rachel did that to me, though. Even before I fell in love, I wanted to impress her, to make her like me. So when I did finally fell for her, it seemed natural."

"What did she say?" Max asks gently.

"Well, it took me a while to confess. I did the whole shy schoolgirl bit." Chloe says rolling her eyes. "Eventually, though, I confessed to her in my room and she said yes! She wanted to take it slow, but the fact that she said yes at all put me on cloud nine."

Max feels a knot in her stomach. She knows for a fact that Rachel was already in a relationship with Victoria at this time, yet she still became involved with Chloe and even said yes to a confession.

The argument between Chloe and Victoria in which she revealed she did not know of Rachel's true relationship with Victoria – even to this day – just makes it so much worse. How much of their relationship is based on a lie? Did Rachel really genuinely care for Chloe at all?

"To be honest, things didn't really change that much afterwards, but it never got dull either. We went everywhere together, she told me of LA and asked me to go with her, she told me how she wanted to be a model, and more. It seems she was just full of dreams and ambition."

"Then one day, she disappeared." Chloe says her face becoming sullen. "She texted me saying she met someone who 'changed her life', then she disappeared off the face of the Earth."

"Someone who changed her life?" Max asks hesitantly. "Does that mean…?"

"I know what you're thinking. You think she ran off with someone, right?" Chloe quickly says. "That definitely didn't happen. _Everybody_ , even her parents, lost contact with her. Even her bank cards and credit cards stayed unused afterwards. Besides, she loved _me_ , Max."

That last part was emphasized heavily, though almost immediately afterwards, Chloe deflated.

"So what does it mean? I…don't know. I spent so much time trying to figure it out. I even asked Victoria whether Rachel had been talking to anyone new recently. I just don't know what it means, Max."

A long sigh escapes her. Then her face suddenly twists in anger.

"By the way, you're probably wondering what this thing between me and her is about. Basically, Victoria has been a complete bitch to both Rachel and me. The worst thing about it is that I don't know _why_."

"Rachel actually introduced us and I got the impression that they were really close friends. Nothing much happened at first. We hanged out, I thought she was cool and a little intense, and we had fun. Then, out of nowhere, she just started fucking with us. She started by calling me out in public putting me down in front of everyone."

Wincing, Max recalls exactly what Victoria said she did. Not to mention both she and Kate have their own first-hand experience of 'the Victoria treatment'. She can really put herself in Chloe's shoes.

This 'out of nowhere' bullying is no doubt the moment when Victoria gave Rachel the ultimatum which failed. She couldn't take the rejection and acted out in her usual way.

"She did the same to Rachel. Then she spread rumors about both of us – about me having a private abortion and AIDS, about Rachel having sex with random people. I would get calls from random assholes because they found my number on some bathroom wall and I'm positive it was her or one of her lackeys. Fuck, she even recorded a video of me vomiting my stomach out at a party and posted it online for everyone to watch. I couldn't fucking get away from her."

Victoria most likely did write them. After all, she admitted to Max that the writings about Rachel throughout Arcadia were definitely from her. The video is, of course, also part of Victoria's MO.

"I thought Victoria had lost her mind and was thinking about beating her ass. Rachel stopped me saying we should ignore her, but I couldn't. She was giving me hell at Blackwell and it was so much worse because I was already getting hell for bad grades and attendance. I had to fucking go see the principal repeatedly because of her and Rachel got shit because she passed a rumor around about her being in a relationship with some teacher."

The Jefferson rumor Victoria mentioned. If she is to be believed, she heard the rumor herself and was not the one to pass it around.

"After that, thank God, she finally backed off, but shit was already rolling thanks to her efforts. Eventually, Blackwell had enough of me and I got expelled. Rachel was tough, though, and she ignored it all, but I could tell she was just being tough. She was definitely bothered because I could see it in her."

"The worst thing is that she still tried to be friends with Victoria. She kept trying to contact her even as the bitch ignored her. When I asked her why, she just said that she misses Victoria and that they should make up. When Victoria ignored her, she actually got depressed. I don't get it at all."

Chloe's voice and facial expressions revealed just how upset she was by the whole fiasco that went on between the three of them. Max marvels at just how much misunderstanding there really is in it all. Her friend is one of the three main people involved in this drama and yet it seems she knows less of the truth than Max does.

It makes her feel guilty. She wanted to tell Chloe the truth and finally dispel all these lies she had believed for so long.

Realizing just how much she's ranting, Chloe takes a deep breath and tries to relax. She leans against Max a bit trying to smile.

"Sorry for losing it, Super Max. I get emotional sometimes, especially when it involves Rachel. You've heard the whole story now: I met Rachel, we fell in love, Victoria decides to fuck us over, I got expelled, then Rachel suddenly disappeared."

Chloe lacked Victoria's ability to eloquently and coherently convey a story. Her method of storytelling involved jumping back and forth, going from subject to subject, and basically saying whatever she remembers first. Nonetheless, Max got the story down.

"Thank you, Chloe." Max begins slowly. "For telling me the story. I'm glad you shared this with me even though it must have been painful. I wish the story could have had a happy ending. With you and Rachel in LA, I guess."

"Yeah, same here." Chloe says sighing, then she turns to Max. "But I'm a little glad I'm not in LA yet. If I was, I don't think I would have seen you. I'm really happy you came back, Max."

Chloe leans over embracing Max who leans into her. "This whole retry thing freaks me out, but you're still you. If I hadn't seen you again, I think there would have been a lot of things I'd regret." She bites her lips. "Give me some time on that whole, uh, 'love' thing, though."

"Don't take it hard." Chloe quickly adds. "It took me a while with Rachel too. I just make it sounds quick."

"No, I understand. Take all the time you need, Chloe."

Chloe smiles. "I really, really wish you could have met Rachel, though. You would have liked her."

She is unsure. She has heard so many negative things about Rachel Amber. David Madsen describes her as manipulative and Victoria's story paints her as disloyal and flakey. Only Chloe has put her in a positive light, yet that has been ruined by Max's knowledge of what was really happening. Rachel doesn't sound like a good person.

…and yet, there must be something wonderful about her. She who attracted Victoria so much that the blonde took it badly when Rachel got too close to Chloe and became so important to Chloe that she spent months trying to track her down.

There must be more to her than Max has so far learned.

"Don't say things you'll regret." Max jokes. "I might like her so much that I'll steal her from you."

"Why steal her? We can all share." Chloe jokes in return smiling into Max's head. "We can all lose our virginities together."

There is a sudden moment of silence. Chloe frown leaning away to look at her. "Sorry, was that joke too blunt?"

"Oh, uh, no. I was just surprised that you pluralized virginity."

"Well, yeah, there's three, right? Me, Rachel, and…" Chloe's eyes widen a little. "No way. You're not…?"

Blushing furiously, Max shakes her head. "That's not what I mean! I meant that I'm surprised _you're_ included in it."

Chloe laughs a bit too loudly. "What, you thought Rachel and I were banging like bunnies? We actually never did it and we've never been with anyone before. I had always imagined we'd lose it together one day, but that day never came."

Max feels something bad rising in her stomach. "Did Rachel tell you she wanted to wait?"

Blushing, Chloe admits, "Well…no, but that's how I had imagined it. Hm, maybe I should have made the first move?" Here, she lets out a small laugh. "Nah, I didn't have the guts. She used to initiate all our kisses because I was too shy."

She wanted to say more. She wanted to ask Chloe whether she thought Rachel may have been with someone else already. She wanted to ask if she ever asked Rachel whether she was a virgin. There was any number of things she could have said to point out that things may not be as Chloe believes.

But she got tongue tied under the creeping realization that her friend will be in for a world of hurt if she ever discovers how lacking in innocence her relationship was. In addition to the already existing world of hurt she currently lives in.

So out of cowardice, Max chooses to joke instead. She snorts, "You're right, you wouldn't have the guts."

Chloe grins at her, "You brat. What's with that snort? You think you could do better?"

"Of course. We both know I was the always the brave one."

It was an obvious jest, of course. Since they were young, Chloe had always been the bolder one of the two of them. She had often led the way into unexplored territory while Max tagged along as a teammate.

Chloe recalls this too and her grins widen. "Oh really? Prove it then."

Grinning in turn, Max accepts the challenge, "How? Name it."

"Do something…I don't know, brave. Something scary and bold."

"That's so vague!" Max laughs. "Make it more specific."

"Just something to prove that you're more daring than me, Miss I-Never-Had-A-Boyfriend."

Max mock glares, "You couldn't initiate a kiss, Chloe. Me? I had initiate two so far."

A blush. "T-that doesn't count."

"Alright, how about a grope this time?"

"What?!"

Max sways her hand forward. "Just a little boob grab? Or do you prefer ass?"

"You fucking pervert! Don't touch me!"

Chloe scrambles up and runs to the back of the yard. Max quickly takes up the chase. She eventually catches up tackling Chloe down – something she suspects she was only able to do because the other girl intentionally ran slowly.

Max appreciates the thought and she returns the favor by immediately trying to grab a handful of Chloe's chest, which the latter blocks by covering herself with her arms and turning away. Giving up, Max lies down besides Chloe laughing.

Her smile falling off, Max asks, "Chloe, do you really believe we'll find Rachel?"

A moment of silence, then a sigh. "…I've lost hope. Damn it, I didn't want to, but I lost hope. It's been _six months_ , Max. How many people disappear for that long and is still…is still alive?"

She said that last part chokingly. Max cries loudly, "But we don't know that! She could have just ran off somewhere! She could…"

Admittedly, she didn't know what to think or, at least, what to claim. Even if she didn't want to think it, the worst outcome seems intent on making itself a gnawing possibility.

"You're sweet, Max." Chloe says emotionlessly. "But I don't think so. No one, not even her parents, has heard from her. Even if she decided not to contact anyone, the only place I could imagine her running away to is LA…and she wanted to model there. I searched endlessly for new models centered around LA for months, Max."

"I…I can't keep searching forever, you know. Even as I'm trying now, passing around these flyers, and doing so much stupid shit, I'm not even sure I really believe it's helping."

"And yet you _must_ believe she is alive somewhere." Max insists. "Maybe on some really deep level, but it's there. Otherwise, you would have given up already, right?"

After a moment's pause, Chloe says, "Yeah, I do. And I also wanted to…" She takes a breath. "You know how I had imagined it all? I had imagined that, one day, I would finally find where she is and rush in to save the day. I would scoop her up in my arms, we would laugh and cry and love, then we would immediately rush off to LA and leave Arcadia Bay forever. Simple, right?"

"But then _you_ appeared out of nowhere." Max sucks in a breath at this. "Five years later and you come in out of the blue and…and it's not fair. It's not fair at all because I see you and I'm thinking how much you've grown and how good you look. I get up close to you and you smell so nice that it makes my head spin."

"I thought it was wrong at first – that I shouldn't be thinking this. I should be focused on Rachel and you wouldn't be interested anyway." A distressed look comes over her face. "But then you're hugging me all the time and letting me hold you and you're sleeping with me in my bed. You're saying these things to me that makes me feel wanted and good."

"Now you're kissing me and asking me to stay by your side. I don't know what to think anymore."

For a moment, Max wonders if she had made a mistake. Perhaps she should have let Chloe initiate contact instead of taking the lead herself? Simply to prevent this conflict of feeling and make things much more clear.

If nothing else, perhaps should have cut back on the friendly affection that happened even from the beginning and she didn't realize she was giving misleading hints. She just didn't think…she used to do a lot of those things so often with Chloe when they were children without even thinking about it.

Hugging and having sleepovers was something they did six days out of seven. When they reconnected, Max just fell back into old habits without any problems. It somehow seems natural to be so close and touchy with Chloe.

"Max." Chloe calls. "If I said that I want to stay by your side right now, will you still have me?"

It didn't take much thought on her part. Later, she would wonder if perhaps she should have thought about it more, but she would never regret it.

"Yes, Chloe. Absolutely."

"Then…let me stay by your side, Max."

"And if we were to find Rachel alive, happy, and ready to finally go to LA with you?"

"I would tell her that I'm not going anywhere unless it's with you."

"Good. I'll hold you to that. I'm not a violent person, Chloe, but I'll go full Victoria on you if you back out later on."

Chloe grins. "I'll happily be the Max Caulfield to your Victoria Chase."

"…I'm getting the hottest mental images right now."

"Pervert." Chloe mutters before sitting up. "Well, how about we go back in? It's time for us to do this whole sneaking around, James Bond stuff."

"Right."

Then Chloe holds out her hand and Max gladly takes it. The two walk back in letting go only when they have to break up to walk up the stairs and into Chloe's room. Inside, Victoria and Kate is already there.

Max glances at Victoria and her eyes widen when she sees the blonde looking directly at her. Victoria's eyes flit slowly from Max to Chloe. There is a look of curiosity in them, though, indicating she does not know what happened, though she no doubt suspects.

"Well, ladies, are we ready?" She asks slowly.

"I'm ready." Kate is the first to respond and she looks like a soldier ready to go to war.

"Y-yes, I'm ready." Max replies.

Chloe nods. "Ditto."

"Alright. Lets go over the plan once more to ensure we're all on the same page." Victoria says authoritatively. "We all agree that Max will be the one to do the infiltration while we do the diversion."

"There are four locked lockers and cabinets. Most are using three digit locks while one is a four digit lock. His laptop is locked too, but that probably uses a phrase which means it'll probably be impossible to check that. This means Max only needs to worry about the lockers and cabinets."

"Don't forget I have the combination to one already." Chloe says. Without looking at Max, she says, "By the way, that one is the cabinet in the corner. The combination to that is 1718."

"Right." Victoria says slowly. "So Max really only needs to worry about one locker and two cabinets. Pragmatically, she'll do the cabinets first because those will be easier and the locker last. If time runs out, she'll abandon the locker. Got that, Max?" At her nodding, Victoria continues. "And remember, when you open those cabinets, just take photos. Don't bother to search through the information."

Max nods in understanding. She pulls her Polaroid camera out and fingers it keeping in mind how quickly she can snap shots.

"Now about the diversion. Do you remember your role, Chloe?"

Chloe coughs to clear her throat and takes a deep breath. Then looking at them, she says, "I think I got it. You will distract him first. If he tries to leave, you'll say 'Please don't leave' loudly to give me the signal to go next. I also use the same signal to get Kate down."

"The codephrase is 'Please don't go yet'." Victoria correct peevishly. "But yes, you have the general idea. The three of us have to do whatever it takes to keep David away from the garage until Max finishes."

"Now then, did Joyce go to bed already?"

Chloe nods. "Yeah, she should have. David is also in the garage now as usual."

"Right. I will go downstairs and sit at the living room table waiting for him to come out. If he takes too long, I'll try to make some noise. Chloe, Kate, the two of you will remain near this room's door to listen in until I call. Stay closer if need be."

Victoria takes a deep breath. "Alright, I'm going."

She leaves with all of them following behind. As Victoria heads into the living room, Max whispers to Chloe and Kate that she'll used the garage entrance near the front door. At their nodded understanding, she tiptoes down the stairs and crouches near the door at the bottom waiting for things to start.

It was painful. Victoria sat at the table humming audibly for some fifteen minutes with no response from the garage. Max feels sweaty and her hands are actually sore from gripping her camera too hard.

A loud sound of crashing and shocked cry nearly makes her wet herself. Max peeks around the stairwell and look into the living room where she sees Victoria lying on the ground. Is this what she meant by making some noise?

She stills at the sound of a door opening, "What is going on here? What happened?"

"Ah, Mr. Madsen, I'm sorry but I've got a bit clumsy. Help me, please?"

That is her cue. Max slowly grips the door handle to the garage, slowly turns it, then inches the door open all the while praying it doesn't creak loudly enough to alert David. Once inside, she shuts the door and lets out a relieved sigh. Only afterwards did she noticed the lock and realized that the entire plan could have gone to the trash had it been locked.

Swallowing, Max takes stock of her surrounding. The area is dimly lit with most of the lights coming from the workshop area. Still, she could make out what appears to be a muscle car without any wheels and shelves full of car supplies.

Realizing she's still crouching, she slowly stands up looking around rapidly afraid David will suddenly pop out of nowhere and bust her. The sight of a series of lockers grabs her attention, though, and Max walks over to it.

As she passes the shelves, she realizes those 'car supplies' she thought she saw are actually food. Dozens of canned food and there are large burlap sacks of rice cereal underneath. It looks almost like some sort of doomsday prep setup. She wouldn't put it pass David to have such a setup, but in the garage?

She has to maneuver around the muscle car to get to the lockers. Prepared to try as many combinations as possible, she stretches her fingers only to stop upon seeing the actual lock.

Max had expected perhaps several padlocks attached to individual lockers. Instead, it appears there was a large metal bar blocking access to several lockers all at once and that bar is attached at the end by a padlock. Moreover, the padlock is the dreaded four digit one meaning Max can't open it anyway.

Knowing time is short and Max can't waste the time trying to open this one, she moves on walking to the main workshop. The workshop door heading to the living room is slightly ajar and Max can hear Victoria and Chloe rapidly talking to David. It causes her to freeze.

Wasn't Chloe supposed to be the 'backup' when Victoria could no longer keep David from coming back? Max had only been in the garage for maybe three to five minutes. Are they having trouble?

Feeling panic, Max knows she needs to hurry.

She stares around and the first to catch her eyes is the cabinet in the corner – no doubt it is the one Chloe says she has the combination to. She walks over to it only to stop upon seeing it was a _gun_ cabinet. It was lined from top to bottom with handguns and revolvers and the sides had shotguns.

Except there is one glaring spot where that seems empty.

A gun cabinet full of guns and there is only one missing. Chloe said she broke into this cabinet and she has shady people after her due to debt. Is it possible…?

The sounds of harsh, panicky whispering from living room alerts Max again that this is no time to dwell. She bends down to rifles through the small drawers at the bottom of the gun cabinet. There were gun cleaning supplies and ammo boxes, but nothing of real use to her. The top portion with the guns had the padlock but she didn't bother to open it not seeing what use guns would be to her.

She looks around again and a series of cupboards on the other side catches her attention due to a number of them having padlocks. Three digit ones. These must be the other cabinets Chloe were talking about.

Max quickly runs up to the first one and places her camera down to examine the lock. She looks at the numbers on the bottom – all zeroes. So David even sets the numbers to zero to make sure no one can guess by looking at the initial ones. Damn it.

She gets to work. What's the best way to do this? Should she go by changing the last digit, the first, or what? Her head burns with panic and confusion. Slowing coming to the realization just how awful this plan was and not knowing what else to do, Max decides to brute force it: 010, 011, 012, 013…

The number dials moves smoothly and the simplicity of the idea allows Max to move quickly. As each number fails, her mind jumbles more and more in panic. The idea of just escaping is highly tempting, but she _needs_ to do this. They need the information.

The lock suddenly opens in Max's hands. She pauses in surprise then lets out an immense relieved breath. Thank God the correct combination was 343. She might have been in a complete mess by the time she reached the 600s.

She sets the padlock on the table and opens the cupboard. Her mouth drops open when her eyes landed on a small TV and several folders. She could have wailed at the wasted time.

It is only the sight of a map attached to the cupboard door that stops her from feeling miserable. It was a map titled 'Blackwell Academy' with several red circles all around the building. In red ink at the bottom right was the words 'placement of cameras'. Apparently, David has big plans for Blackwell.

Max starts realizing that the TV may not be meant for watching cable. She switches it on with one hand blocking the audio port and a finger on the volume button ready to rapid press it to mute. When it turns on, though, there is no sound. Instead, a low resolution video feed pops up showing the downstairs hallway, then the garage with Max clearly in it.

She turns and stares at the general area of where the camera should be wide-eyed. When she turns back, there's a video feed of the living room and she can clearly see Victoria, David and Chloe in it. David is facing Victoria and the two of them appears to be arguing about something, but there is no audio so Max can't hear them. Victoria's face is pleading while David's is annoyed. Chloe is standing with her back towards the garage entrance. She looks nervous too.

The feed switches to the backyard, then front yard. The upstairs hallway appears next and Max can clearly see Kate crouching at the top of the stairwell facing downwards trying to listen.

The next feed appears and Max's mouth drops open. She can see Joyce's sleeping form. David installed cameras in the _bedrooms_? Waiting patiently for the next feed, Max releases a breath when it circles back to the downstairs hallways again. She doesn't know how she would take it if the next feed shows Chloe's bedroom.

Max reaches for the folders placed on top of the TV. Inside were a series of photographs – almost all of Chloe sneaking around. There were some of strange kids in the backyard or shady characters skulking around the front, but the majority were of Chloe up to some indiscretion. There were photos of her smoking a joint, throwing away her prescription pills, sneaking out of her bedroom window.

Biting her lips, she wonders if she should bother even taking a photo of this. It isn't exactly the information they were looking for.

Not wanting to leave empty handed, though, she sighs and takes a shot of the folder contents alongside the monitor screen. Putting the folders back, she turns seeing that she has to try the next one.

At this point, it occurs to her that things were unusually quiet. Listening closely, she hears muffled voices but they didn't sound like they were from the living room. What's going on?

A strain of nervous tension passes through her and she focuses on the TV. The feed was on the front yard. It switches to the upstairs hallway next and Max sees Kate…peeking her head out from inside Chloe's bedroom. Why would she move further back? Her tension increases.

Joyce's bedroom next. Then the feed circles to the downstairs hallway and Max freezes. There was Victoria and Chloe at the foot of the stairs. They're gesturing wildly to David and he looks like he's shooing them up. Then he turns and walks towards the living room as Victoria and Chloe stares after him biting their fingers.

A horrible realization hits Max. He's coming back.

In a flurry, she turns off the TV and locks the cupboard again making sure to set the dials back to zero. She takes panic gasps as she desperately searches for a way out, but it seems hopeless. David was already walking towards here when she realized it so she can't make it back through the other door without having him hear or possibly even see her.

The sound of his approaching footsteps makes her tremble. She tries to calm herself knowing he wouldn't do much other than yell at her and possibly ban her from the house, but she doesn't _want_ to be banned. Plus the fact that they'll have nowhere to go from here.

A slim screwdriver catches her attention. Followed by the sight of her camera. A horrible idea occurs to her. Picking up the screwdriver, she swallows down all the negative feelings and jams it inside the photo dispenser.

Just as she throws the screwdriver back, the garage door swings opens. David stops his eyes widening upon seeing her standing in the middle of his workshop looking back at him wide eyed.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He shouts.

Max cowards inwards. "I'm s-sorry, Mr. Madsen. I-it's just my, well, my camera…" She lifts up the camera. "It's broken. I thought I might be able to fix it, so I snuck out of the room when I saw Chloe had gone somewhere to come here and borrow your tools."

David scowls. "Chloe was just with me. She wanted some damn 'father-daughter' bonding time. Your friend was with her." He looks at your camera. "Couldn't you have just asked me?"

She flinches. "I didn't want to bother you, Mr. Madsen. I thought I could do it on my own."

"Let me see that."

He comes over and she willingly hands him the camera. He shakes it a little listening. He gives a confused look. "What's wrong with it?"

"It's the photo dispenser. It doesn't seem to be working right. Here."

She takes back the camera, takes a shot of the door, and prays that she actually did break the photo dispenser. To her relief, the camera whirls but when the photo came out, it was in an awkward position and torn.

"Hmm." David looks at it carefully. "Let me have that."

He takes it again and brings it over to the desk where he takes some tools and gets to work opening it. Max waits patiently feeling thankful her ploy worked. She might very well lose her camera in the process, though, and she can just imagine the call to her parents about buying her a new one.

"So, uh, Max, how have things been?"

She blinks surprised that David is trying to make conversation with her. "Oh, uh, they've been good. My classes have been going well."

It was lame, but all she knew how to say. David didn't seem to mind, however, he clears his throat again.

"Say, if you don't mind me asking, how long have you known Kate?"

Another blink and her heart quicken a bit. It's happening again. It's actually happening again. David is going to question her about Kate.

"Not too long, Mr. Madsen, I-"

"Please. Call me David."

It seems like a rather obvious attempt to become friendly with her, but in an odd way, it helps her too. After all, even as David is trying to get her to spill information, she wants to get _him_ to do the same.

"Oh. Oh sure, David." Max swallows. "I haven't really known her that long. I just started attending Blackwell this year and I met Kate shortly afterwards. We became friends because…" She pauses to think it over. "I think we're both really similar."

"We're quiet, like to drink tea, and we both share a passion for photography." Max tries to smile sincerely not knowing how she looks. "Neither of us have many friends and we didn't get out much, so we spend a lot of time keeping each other company."

It was a description tailored exclusively to him and it has the effect Max intended. David's eyes furrow in confusion as if he has to reconcile the Kate in his head versus the one described by Max.

"I…see. Is Kate more your friend, Victoria's, or Chloe's?"

"I think we're all pretty friendly with each other, but we were friends first before she got to know Victoria or Chloe."

"That's curious." David says and he looks at her as if testing. "Because I could have sworn Kate and Victoria did not like each other or, at least, that Victoria did not like Kate."

So he noticed. He noticed the kind of treatment Kate has been getting. Max scowls internally wondering why he had not done anything about it then.

"They weren't really good friends before…" Max begins thinking on how to explain this. "In fact, I'd go as far as to say they might have been enemies." A generous description of what happened. "But they got closer after I brought them together for tea and they had a good talk about things. I think realizing what they do have in common helped to ease things a lot."

It was a complete lie. She would tell the truth, but it seems both the truth and the lie are equally difficult to believe. David's face certainly shows plenty of skepticism, but he accepts it at face value not wanting to push it.

That's fine with Max. Now it's her turn.

"David…I have a concern."

He looks up from staring into the innards of her camera. "Hmm? Yes?"

"I think we have a serious problem at Blackwell."

"About what?" He says nonchalantly as if unconcerned.

She scowls. "I think we have a drug problem."

There it is. The moment when she had him. She was watching closely and the moment she said it, she could see his fingers still and his entire body tenses. Then a look comes into his eye and he faces her giving his complete attention.

"A drug problem? I'm glad you came to me with this, Max. I had suspected the same, but had no evidence. Do you know something? Have you witnessed anything?"

"I've…seen something I think is pretty suspicious. I think it is drugs, but I'm not sure at all. I thought it would be best if I brought it to your attention. David."

"Yes, you did right. I knew it was strange that you came into the garage so sneakily, but this is the real reason, isn't it? Alright, Max, don't be afraid. You have Blackwell's full protection. Tell me who is she?"

Again, that obvious indicator that he is still thinking about Kate. Max tries to fight down her frustration.

"It's a _he_ , actually." Max emphasizes. His face expresses a bit of surprise, but turns serious again. "Do you know someone named Nathan Prescott?"

He scoffs. "Who doesn't know Nathan Prescott? Rich son of the Prescott family who is the wealthiest family in Arcadia Bay. Even if you weren't aware of that, he's also one of the most noticeable members of the Vortex Club." Here, David looks at Max cautiously. "Are you saying he's doing or dealing drugs?"

"I…yes, I think so. I've seen him do things and act in ways which are really, you know, _weird_. It just doesn't seem right." Max intentional keeps things vague. "I think he's a really shady character. Do you know anything about him, David? Did he ever act strange or did anything weird that you know of?"

He hesitates. He averts his eyes. A feeling comes up inside of Max. David looks nervous. There's no way…

"Well, I don't think Nathan acts much different than any other kids, really." David says cautiously. "I haven't noticed anything about Nathan that's _really_ shady."

She can't believe it. He's protecting Nathan. The way he doesn't look at her in the eyes, his cautious wording, and his body language. Anger slowly rises inside of Max at this realization and she couldn't stop what comes out next.

"You're lying."

"Excuse me?" He says crossly.

"You're protecting Nathan Prescott. Are you working for his family or are you working for Blackwell? Or is both the same thing?"

"Now hold on a minute, miss! You don't understand-"

"As security, your job is to protect the students of Blackwell, isn't it? To investigate matters which could cause us harm, isn't it? I just came to you saying that a student is potentially a danger to himself and others, but you're dismissing it."

"You don't understand." David repeats harshly. "I can't just make random accusations against Blackwell students like that, especially against someone like Nathan Prescott. I need clear evidence and not just a single piece of it. I need a lot of it."

"A witness is not enough?"

"You said you only saw him do things and act strangely – that's hardly compelling evidence." David snaps. "Even if you saw him outright snorting coke, though, you're just one person. It's your word against Nathan's. If I were to make an accusation on witnesses alone, I would need a good cross-section of witnesses and they all need to have seen something clear and irrefutable."

Her anger ebbs a little. As much as she wanted to be angry, she knew the man had a point. The worst part, though, is that she does, in fact, have the witnesses and irrefutable sighting. Three of them – Max, Victoria, and Chloe – knows Nathan has a gun and even has one from him. Two of them – Victoria and Chloe – knows Nathan use and sell drugs. Kate is the most tenuous witness of all, but based on the strength of the others, her case can be made much stronger.

The problem is multi-fold, however. First and foremost is Max's own promise to Victoria to _help_ Nathan. As much as it frustrates her, she wants to uphold that promise even if, at this point, she has utterly no idea how to help a lunatic.

The second problem is that Victoria is the only reliable witness of the entire bunch. Chloe is a dropout with a poor history and Blackwell isn't likely to take her testimony in good faith. Max has no history, but her testimony may likely be affected by the fact that she's close friends with Kate making her emotionally involved. Victoria, on the other hand, is a known friend of Nathan, has an excellent academic history, an accredited background, and is generally influential herself.

In short, the most reliable witness of the bunch is the one who doesn't want to be a witness.

She slumps against a wall. "You're…right. You are right, but it's not fair. He's causing a lot of harm and there's nothing anyone can do about it."

"I'm _trying_ to protect the student body, Max." David says gruffly. "But there's only so much I can do. I am currently onto a possible drug ring too, so you-"

"Kate has _nothing_ to do with drugs, David." She interrupts sharply.

He paused and surprise flits across his face. "How…did you know I suspected her?"

"Your questioning and manner gave it away." She says dismissively.

An upset look crosses his face. No doubt he's chastising himself for giving away his intentions so easily. The man probably keeps so many secrets that he's paranoid about everything.

Max glances at him hesitantly as she tries to figure out a way to get information. An idea has been lulling in her head, but trying to bring the subject up is no easy task. Furthermore, he's been tinkering with the camera for a while now and he might finish soon.

Fearing time is dwindling, Max decides to go for it.

"David, do you have information on people you suspect? Like files or something like that?"

He tenses and becomes guarded. "Why do you ask?"

"Let me have access to them." She pleads.

"Don't be ridiculous! Those are for my eyes and my eyes alone!"

"But I can help you." Max persists. "You may be security, but I'm a student. I'm also a girl. I can go places and do things you can't. All the security guards at Blackwell are men, right?" She doesn't actually know. She just assumes they are. "I can go into the girls' bathroom and shower. I can talk to them freely and easily."

"I'm also a student, so other students will trust me more easily and tell me things they won't tell you. They will say and do things in front of me they won't in front of you or anyone they think is with you."

She can see him slowly coming around to the idea but some last vestige of stubbornness is there. The idea of a student lending a hand is probably making him very uncomfortable. Perhaps he views his job as dangerous and men's work only.

Max decides to push even further.

"Aren't you tired of having to sneak around gathering tiny pieces of info here and there? Don't you think you could do so much more if you could only find a way to more quickly get information? Don't you think we _both_ want the same thing? We both want a better Blackwell, David, and we can only get there if we work together."

It sounded cheesy even to Max's ears but David's eyes were settling and losing the last bit of resistance.

"You're right. I know you are." He says. "But I just don't think this is the kind of work for you. It could be potentially dangerous and I don't feel right putting you in danger, especially since Joyce and Chloe love you so much."

"But I won't be doing anything dangerous." That was and probably will remain the most blatant lie Max can tell. "I'll just be gathering information through word of mouth and listening to others. It's not like I'll be breaking into houses and robbing drug dealers, right?"

"Besides, you forget that I have an ace." At his confused look, she tries to imitate Victoria's confident look. "Chloe is my best friend. If I were to pass information to you whenever I come over to her house, who could possibly know? Hell, how many even know you are her stepfather? We never interact in public or by phone, but I can share info whenever I come here."

That did it. She can see it. Elation rises in her realizing David is convinced and he may give her what she wants.

"Alright, you win, missy. I'll take you on as a…partner? Co-security?"

"I like partner better." Max smiles. "And since we're partners now…can I have access to those information files?"

Another slight hesitation before he nods. "I will give you access to information files on Nathan. I just-"

"Not just Nathan. All files." Max breaks in boldly.

He looks surprised. " _All_ of them? I thought you were just concerned about Nathan? Why do you want all of them?"

"David, if there's one thing I learned, and I think it's something you know too, it is that a lot of things are interconnected even if we can't see it at first. I want all the files you have because another file may reveal something that I can't see with Nathan's files alone."

Seeing more hesitation, she quickly adds, "For example, if this is all about drugs, I can guess Frank Bowers is probably involved somehow, right?"

A pause. A grudging look of respect passes his eyes. "You…are surprisingly well informed, Max Caulfield. I don't know how seeing as all I've ever seen you do is go to class, but I guess you have your ways." He lets out a deep sigh. "I can't give you all the files I have, but I will give you as much as I can. I'll print it all out and hand it to you along with your fixed camera in the morning. Deal?"

She smiles. "Deal."

Max turns and walks out the garage feeling like a winner. The original plan failed but she managed to get what they needed anyway through sheer persistence. The feeling of success is intoxicating.

Upstairs, Max goes into Chloe's room eager to pass on the good news, but stops as soon as she enters. The atmosphere was _suffocating_.

Kate looks visibly nervous and Max is quickly becoming unnerved by slight glances she throws her way every now and then. Chloe is very upset. She's smoking a cigarette and she's even making that look bad with the way she quickly inhales and exhales hardly caring where she blows the smoke. Her face is marred with hurt and confusion.

Victoria is giving her glances too, but they're _apologetic_ glances. This worsens the dread inside of her. The blonde is rarely apologetic about anything. If there's something for her to be apologetic to Max about, then chances are something's about to hit her and hit her hard.

What exactly happened here while she was gone?

"H-hey, guys." Max chokes out perhaps more quietly than she intended. When their attention flits to her, she cowers into herself a little. "I have good news."

When no one responds, Max flinches but continues.

"I c-couldn't break into the locked cupboards in time but I managed to convince David to give me the information files he has anyway."

It was a lame explanation, but it was also she could come up with. Nonetheless, her explanation elicited surprise from all.

Victoria sighs, "I'm…sorry about that. I guess I got overconfident in my ability to hold that man's attention. After I got him out of the garage, I tried to keep him there but he kept blowing me off. I ended up calling Price…sorry, _Chloe_ down much faster than I originally intended."

"And I couldn't hold him either." Chloe says slowly. "I was trying so hard I even forgot to call Kate down. I don't think she would have made any difference anyway."

"Well, no matter. See, I'm his new partner." At everyone's blank stare, she continues, "I told him I would help him investigate a potential drug problem at Blackwell if he gave me access to information files. It took some doing, but I convinced him. Only thing is that I had to break my camera to stop him from throwing me out in the beginning."

Victoria scowls. "Sorry about that. You can borrow one of mine."

"It's alright. David is fixing mine right now. He says it should be done by morning." Here, she hesitates not sure how to approach what she wants to ask next. "Uh, is everything alright, guys? Things seem a little tense here."

The short diversion of what had happened lightened the atmosphere a little, but her question caused everything to revert. After a short pause, Victoria is the first to speak.

"After we failed to keep David occupied, we holed up here worrying ourselves to wrinkles. Things got a bit tense and we all may have been a bit worried, especially knowing your tendency to get yourself killed." She jokes blandly. "That's when we got to talking."

"Chloe mentioned how she hopes there are some good Nathan files because she's positive she already knows what's in Rachel's files and how it's all 'bullshit minor things'. I pointed out that there's a good chance there may be something important about her related to Frank seeing they were together."

"Which is bullshit." Chloe mutters. "That was one the fucking rumors started by _you_."

"I only spread it because it's true." Victoria hisses. "So we did our thing and got into an argument about Rachel again. Because that's what we do." She says snarkily. "Well, in the midst of this, I may have revealed that she had more than one relationship. Then Chloe here revealed the biggest load of bullshit I've ever heard. That Rachel was still a virgin."

Victoria sighs heavily. "I got so pissed off that I outright told her about Rachel and I. What happened and all that." She clears her throat here. "I, uh…may have told her that you already knew."

Max pales. As soon as Rachel was brought up, she already had an inkling of what happened. She hadn't expected Victoria to come open about what happened between her and Rachel, though. More importantly, she hadn't expected her to reveal that Max was in the know.

That means that the source of Chloe being upset is most likely…

"So Max, when we were outside talking about Rachel…why didn't you tell me?" Chloe asks.

She slowly raises her eyes to meet that of Chloe's staring emotionlessly at her.

"I…I'm sorry, Chloe. I just thought-"

"-that it would better if I didn't know, right?" She finishes. "I get it. It's the same reasoning I hear for so much other shit." Max flinches. "Damn it, Max, I thought I could trust you."

"Chloe, it's not like that. I…I just…"

The problem with denying this is that it is exactly like that. She did, in fact, hid the truth as she thought it would hurt Chloe. Max knew that if the truth ever get out, it would make her ugly but she figured the end justified the means.

That becomes so much more difficult to believe when faced with the consequences.

"I just didn't want to see you hurt."

"Real fucking success there, Max."

"Don't get angry at her just because Rachel and I fucked like bunnies."

Max quails miserably at Victoria's antagonism. Immediately, Chloe glares hatefully at Victoria who returns the glare unflinchingly.

"You must have had a real fucking good laugh at me, didn't you, Victor? You were aware of it when it was happening. Was it really funny to you?"

"Why the fuck are you acting so uppity? You're the one that stole my fucking girlfriend."

"Maybe I wouldn't have if you had just _told me_."

"If I had, would you have listen? You were like a fucking puppy to Rachel. She told you such obvious bullshit and you swallowed it. If I had said something, you wouldn't have believed a word of it."

Chloe's eyes steels. "Yeah…yeah, you're right. I wouldn't. Because you're a fucking liar. You know what? How do I know what you're saying right now is true?"

Victoria laughs snidely. "Are you really going down this path? Do you really want to play this game?"

"No game about it." Chloe growls. "I still remember the time you posted an ad with my number on a telephone pole and told people to call it for cheap crack. My mom saw it, recognized the number, and nearly fucking kicked me out."

" _Ma faute_." Victoria says dismissively. "But everything else I said is true. C'mon. You don't think Rachel just has all those rumors about her out of nowhere, do you?"

"A lot of people get off on being dicks." Chloe says. "You, for instance. I don't see how a sweet person like Rachel could possibly want you."

"You can't? Just _look_ at me. Do you see this sweater? This skirt? Have you ever even heard of Kors? Cucinelli?" Chloe's eyes burn with hatred. "Look at this face. See any blemishes? Feel free to use a magnifier. Do you think anyone can resist me?"

Victoria attacks all of Chloe's weak points viciously. Max's chest burns as she listens helplessly. Their group which is barely in its infancy is already tearing at the seams. Worse, she contributed to it.

Should she have told Chloe the truth? Would it have avoided this?

"Except Victor-" Chloe hisses. "you said she left you. Obviously, she is able to resist."

The smouldering glare she receives gives her confirmation. "You list off your damn expensive clothing as if that's everything. Is that how you attracted your last few flings? I bet they all used you for your money and that's it."

Even Max flinches at that attack. Victoria, on the other hand…if looks could kill, Chloe would be dead twice over.

"Look at you? Ha! Look at _me_. I'm poor and I have nothing. My skin has blemishes and I don't fucking know French. Yet I still stole your girlfriend and she stuck with me. That's the difference between you and me. I don't need money to keep my relationships alive."

"You fucking animal." Victoria bites. "So you believe that Rachel was mine then?"

A moment of silence. "Even…even if is true, then so what? She loved _me_. She may have…strayed with you, but she loved me. I know this because she wanted me to go with her to-"

"To Los Angeles to become a model?" Victoria cruelly mocks. Chloe snaps her head up in surprise. "You dumbass. Do you know how many people she said that to? I myself know three, not including you. Also, you misunderstand. She didn't strayed by going to me. She strayed by going to _you_."

Chloe didn't respond. She looked _crushed_. Max's heart clenches painfully inside her chest as she looks at her face.

When Chloe doesn't respond, Victoria continues. "Do you get it yet? She was _my_ girlfriend and she got with you while she was still _my_ girlfriend."

Chloe remained silent. Instead, tears well up in her eyes and slowly drip down her face. She crumbles onto her knees as her shoulder trembles and she sobs silently now that the full extent of the truth has come out to her.

Victoria looks as if she was about to continue when Max steps in front of Chloe, "Victoria, stop it. Now. This has gone on long enough."

"Are you siding with her?" The blonde stares Max down. "Even knowing I'm right?"

"It's not about siding with anyone or right or wrong. Chloe's hurt now. We're a team and we shouldn't be doing this to each other."

"Some fucking team. One of my partners stole my fucking girlfriend and I'm expected to work with this douchebag?"

Max grows angry. "Victoria, remember that _you_ aren't innocent either. We all make mistakes."

"Do you mean Kate? God, I haven't done anything to her recently, have I? Do you have to keep throwing that in my face?"

"It was less than a week ago since you bullied her, Victoria." Max hisses. "In fact, it was less than a week ago since you bullied _me_. We also aren't your only victims. Remember Juliet and Dana? Remember Megan?"

Almost as soon as the word left her mouth, Max knew it was a mistake but it was too late to take back. Victoria's eyes narrows dangerously and, for a moment, Max genuinely thought she was going to throttle her. A phantom sting on her cheek from when Victoria slapped her reminds her physical violence is not too far fetched.

But Victoria doesn't hit her. Instead, she walks to the doorway. There, she glares over her shoulders at Max and also looks snidely at Chloe.

"Max, I am going back to Blackwell. I'm going to wait outside in my car for thirty minutes. If I see you before then, I'll forgive what you just said right now. If you're not out by then, I'm leaving."

"Wait, Victoria, please, we have to-"

"No, Max. This partnership thing isn't working out. If you want to continue with me, I'll be happy to have you. If not, well, I guess this is the end then."

She walks out without another word. As she did, Max feels Chloe gets up behind her. Chloe walks to the door too.

"Chloe? Where are-"

"Max." She says choking a bit. "I'm going to the bathroom. I'm going to be in there for a while. Please be here when I come back. If our friendship, if _I_ , mean anything to you at all, stay away from that fucking bitch."

Then Chloe leaves too. It was an ultimatum. Both of them were demanding that she makes the choice between the two of them. Choosing one would mean losing the other.

Tears well up in her own eyes and Max falls to the floor. A moment later, she feels arms wrap around her and Kate's soothing voice comes into her ears.

"Shh. It's alright, Max."

"It hurts, Kate. They're making me choose and it hurts."

"I know." She says holding Max against her. "I know. Just cry and let it out."

"I don't want to cry anymore." She says even as her tears flow freely. "I've done enough of that already. I just…God, I don't know, Kate! I'm going to lose one of them, I just know it. What do I do?"

"I don't think I can answer that for you, Max." Kate says softly. "They're both hurt too and this is a mess that is hard to sort out."

"I didn't mean to do this, you know. It…it wasn't supposed to be like this."

"I know. I believe you. Don't worry. We all make mistakes."

It was cliché and simplistic, but Kate's words help. Or maybe it was really her soothing embrace and lull of her voice. Max slowly calms down and regains control of herself.

"God, this sucks." Max says her voice muffled as she leans against her friend. "What do I do, Kate? If I choose one, I think I'll lose the other. Should I just choose neither?"

Kate bites her lips. "I…think that's a bad idea. If you don't choose one, you might hurt both." She sighs. "It is a real mess."

Feeling miserable, Max says, "My gut tells me to go with Chloe, but that's not fair, is it?"

"Only you can decide that, Max. Just know that whatever you choose, I support you and I'll do my best to help."

She smiles. "Thanks, Kate. You're a real friend."

Max takes a breath and tries to think. Her first instinct tells her to go with Chloe, but she isn't sure if that simply because she knew Chloe best and felt better with her. Another side tells her that Victoria is more important to the investigation but that side makes Max grimace as it made her felt like she's using Victoria.

She tries to 'randomly' choose a person in her mind reciting a rhyme and that felt too careless as if she's disregarding their feelings. She didn't know what to do.

Taking another breath, Max makes a choice and hopes it's the right one.

"I'm going to stay with Chloe, Kate. I think I can sort all of this out best if I stay with her."

Guilt flows through Max, but she gets over it. She tells herself that she's not really choosing, just trying to repair the group. They will all be together again.

Kate nods. "I'll go with Victoria then. I'll try to talk to her and make her understand, Max."

Leaning away, Max smiles, "Thanks again, Kate."

"Of course. That's what friends are for." She flusters a bit. "And Max, best of luck to you. Please call me tomorrow."

"I will, Kate."

She leaves and Max remains trying to think of how to proceed. Groaning to herself, Max wonders how she's going to even start trying to fix everything.

Waiting anxiously, she nearly jumps out of her skin when the sound of footsteps appears. A bit later, Chloe reappears at the door. Her eyes are bloodshot and she looks haggard, but the girl lets out a relieved sigh upon seeing Max.

Max jumps up. "Chloe, lets talk. Please."

"Tomorrow, Max." Chloe mutters. Seeing Max taken back, she adds, "I'm happy you stayed, Max, but give me some time, alright?" Chloe walks over and flops down onto her bed. "I'm just so damn tired right now. Everything is wrong in the world. I just want to sleep right now."

"But Chloe, just let me expla-"

" _Goddammit_ , Max, I said tomorrow!" Chloe snaps furiously. "Christ, just stop being so, so, so _you_ for once!"

Chloe wraps her blanket around herself and ignores her. Max reels as if slapped in the face and her eyes burn but she valiantly fights the tears back. She whispers 'I'm sorry' though Chloe's lack of movement makes her wonder if her whisper was heard at all.

It seems she vastly overestimated her ability to assuage Chloe's hurt feelings. Hopefully, she'll have better luck tomorrow but now appears to be out of the question. Feeling distinctly unwelcomed, she gets off the bed and takes one of the sleeping bags left behind by Kate and Victoria.

An incredible feeling of exhaustion overwhelms her too. She snuck into Nathan's room today, had some kind of tractor fall right on top of her in a barn, kissed Chloe, tried to sneak into David's garage and steal files, and now fell into the middle of a breaking fight between Chloe and Victoria.

Maybe Chloe has a point. Sleep would be wonderful right now.

So she slept. She slept fitfully and unevenly and uncomfortably. As she slept, a vivid dream comes to her.

She is standing in the middle of Arcadia Bay, except everything has been completely annihilated. From end to end, there are massive piles of debris everywhere. In the distance, she can see a fire burning and huge clouds of black smoke rising into the air. The sounds of sirens reverberate through the city.

Max knew right off that it was a dream – possibly the same as the one she had before. She walks along the road continuing to view the destruction and, as with the last dream, she is unable to dreg up any emotion. Somehow, sometime, without her awareness, she was transported to the Two Whales. Whatever hit the rest of town has obviously hit here too and in such devastating force that there is hardly even a piece of debris larger than her. There are cars lining the road – some are burning, almost all are overturned.

She looks more closely at the debris and noticed the red splotches everywhere. She swallows knowing what it probably represents.

Turning around, she suddenly finds herself in front of Blackwell. The school is, as with everywhere else, a pile of rubble. It looked far worse than even in her last dream. Where is everyone? Why hasn't she seen a single person? Is everyone dead and buried in the rubble?

Max turns towards the direction of the lighthouse. She blinks and, when she opens her eyes, she's there at the bottom. She slowly walks up towards the lighthouse forced to climb over fallen trees along the way. Surprisingly, the lighthouse itself appears to be intact unlike the rest of town.

At the top, she pauses noticing some bodies near the lighthouse. She walks over and Max sees that it's the bodies of her friends. It was horrific. Victoria's body was bloody and twisted in a horrible way. Chloe was missing a limb and there is a large hole in her shoulder. Kate was just a mess of blood.

She wanted to scream and fall to her knees, but she couldn't. No emotion welled up. She wanted to close her eyes instead and couldn't do that either.

Something off to the side catches her attention. In the ocean, there is a whirlpool. As she stares, it slowly grows larger and larger. Then out of the water, a tunnel of wind explodes upwards twisting and pulling at the ocean along with it. It turns into a massive tornado and the wind howls with the immense force it exhibits.

Around her, things begin to break apart and get dragged into the tornado. The trees she had crossed over to get here flies upwards, the lighthouse cracks and breaks, Max feels a tugging on her body. She didn't care.

Max dives down and grab onto the bodies of her friends. Even if they were dead, she didn't want to let them go and allow the monstrous storm to take them. She tries to shout out their names meaningless as it is, but no sound comes out. Despair slowly overcomes her. She wanted to wake up. She tries pinching herself – no pain.

Her eyes catches sight of Victoria’s purse which had fallen by the side with its contents spilled out. Among the contents is a gun – the gun Victoria had taken from Nathan. Taking hold of it, she irrationally opens fire into the storm. A meaningless gesture born out of desperation.

Except it has an effect. Wherever she shot, the bullets caused ripples and the storm distorted. It would not stop, though, and Max lowers the gun helplessly.

Seeing the hopelessness all around her, she lets go of her friends' bodies and watches as the tornado takes them into itself one by one. As it tugs at Max too, she decides she didn't want to let it have her. She lifts the gun and places it against her head.

She pulls the trigger.


	9. Chapter 09

**Chapter 09**

Max wakes up with a horrific headache and dry mouth. She tries to keep her eyes closed against the sunlight flowing into Chloe's room to allow herself time to get over whatever it is afflicting her.

The sound of the birds annoys her greatly and she tries to wrap the blanket closer around herself to block the chill she feels only to realize she didn't have a blanket. At that moment, her thoughts clear a bit and she also realizes she appears to be sleeping sitting up…and the sounds of the birds is _really_ loud.

Her head shoots up and Max gets the surprise of her life. She's outside.

Looking rapidly around, she realizes she was sleeping in the driver seat of some strange truck. It's parked on the shoulders of the road surrounded by trees. All of this explains why she's sleeping the way she was, the loud sound of nature, and why she's cold.

Unfortunately, the most important question is still unanswered. Why she is sleeping in a strange vehicle at all.

The idea that she might have been kidnapped pops up but is dismissed immediately. To begin, it is extremely unlikely someone snuck into the Price household, grabs her, and brings her all the way here without waking her up. She looks down at herself and grimaces at the red jacket and dark jeans. It seems _really_ unlikely he managed to change her clothes without letting her know.

Even if he somehow managed all of that, it seems inexplicable that her kidnapper would suddenly give her his car and disappear.

She stops. On a hunch, Max looks at the ignition slot and…she sees the car key. She is sitting in some stranger's car and his car key is in the ignition. She could literally take the truck right now. Problem is that even if she did take it, she literally has no idea where she is. Still, it is reasonable that if she doesn't know, then she could simply drive forward until she recognizes something, right?

She glances around in indecision whispering to herself, "What do I do?" Max pause. That wasn't her voice. "Hello? Hello? My name is Max Caulfield. Hello?"

This definitely isn't her voice. It is obviously a man's voice. Why is a man's voice coming out of her?

A sinking feeling rises inside of Max. She looks into the rearview mirror and notes that it's not her eyes staring back at her. Frantically, she pulls down the sun visor to look into its mirror adjusting until she could see the whole face. Max freezes.

Nathan Prescott is staring back at her.

She looks back down at the clothes she's wearing again. Red jacket, white vest, dark jeans. Why had she not noticed it before? This is the clothes Nathan likes to wear. She opens the door and jumps outside to look at the truck she was in. She already knew by that point, but she had to confirm and she knew as soon as she saw it. Nathan's red truck.

Now she is fully panicked. She's somehow Nathan Prescott, asleep inside of his car, and in the middle of nowhere.

This is not a kidnapping, but perhaps an insane dream. It has to be. She pinches herself and felt pain. A part of her mind also reminds her that she's actually cold right now. These two parts are fighting against the part of her mind that says how illogical it is that she somehow woke up as a completely different person.

She simply has no explanation for how this happened, though. She needs…she needs Victoria. She can explain this or at least offer some reasonable theory.

Max jumps back into the car and turn the ignition. She figures if she keeps driving forward, she'll eventually come to a landmark or maybe just a highway market that'll lead her to Arcadia. Once inside the town again, she should be able to easily find her way.

A massive blare of rock music makes her jump and nearly deafens her. Max hurries to locate the volume control on the large screen panel, but opts to simply press the 'Eject Disc' button as she found it first. As the disc comes out, she notices that the panel contains an icon at the top that says 'Navi'.

It takes her a few seconds of testing the various knobs near the screen, but she eventually maneuver it to the icon and presses it. As she had suspected and hoped, a GPS pops up. Thank goodness Nathan is a rich kid.

Max enters the address for Blackwell and, once it's loaded, she slowly eases out of the road shoulder trying to acclimate to driving Nathan's truck and drives forward. She has her license but she doesn't drive often preferring to take the bus instead, so she's a little slow at this. A groan comes out of her a few minutes later when the GPS recalibrates itself and notes that she's heading in the wrong direction.

Some half hour later, she arrives at Blackwell after several near collisions and a lot of honking.

She quickly parks into a spot and hurries to get out. It is only twenty minutes until Victoria's first class, so she'll have to hurry. Max runs across Blackwell – surprisingly quickly – towards the girls' dorms looking around the while just in case Victoria left early.

" _Hey, Nate, what's up!_ " A voice yells.

Max slows a step in surprise, but remembering who she looks like, she waves back trying to give a smile. This happens a few more times and, in each case, she tries to respond as neutrally as possible. She prays none of Nathan's friends tries to stop her for a chat.

As she gets through the gates leading to the girls' dorm, Max nearly bulldoze a girl and had to quickly maneuver to the side slamming into the wall. She was surprised she was even able to do so. So far, Nathan's body is proving to be much faster and lither than hers.

"I'm sorry. I was in a hurry." She apologizes but stops as soon as she looks at the girl. "Kate?"

Kate Marsh was the girl she nearly ran over. She's staring wide eyed at Max and there was a tinge of fear inside her eyes. Max licks her lips nervously not sure how to react. She wanted to hug Kate, but she gets the feeling doing so now would be a very bad idea.

"Uh, I, um…" She swallows. "Kate, where is Victoria?"

She averts her eyes and mumbles. "I don't know."

She couldn't tell if Kate was lying to her or not. She couldn't even be upset at her if she was. After all, in nearly any other scenario, Max would _want_ Kate to prevent Nathan from seeing Victoria regardless of whether the latter wanted to see him or not.

Unfortunately, this is not one of those scenarios. "Please, Kate, this is important. It's…" How would she explain this? "It's not what you think. I'm not going to hurt Victoria, I need her help."

Kate looks at Max emotionlessly. Frustrated, Max lifts her arms in the air intending to show her that she was unarmed. The move makes Kate jumps back a bit in fright.

"No! Don't be nervous. I'm just trying to show you I'm unarmed." Max pauses. She actually doesn't know if Nathan is unarmed or not. She didn't bother to check the entire way here. "Well, at least I think I'm unarmed."

That was the wrong thing to say. Kate's eyes alight in panic and she takes several steps back. Max lowers her arms helplessly just plain not sure how to explain things to Kate.

Fortunately, she didn't have to. At that point, Victoria walks around the corner. The blonde is dressed as immaculately as ever and her appearance seems the same, but her body language is vicious. She walks with heavy footsteps and her face is set in a snarl.

As soon as she sees the both of them, she narrows her eyes and quickens her pace. She stops besides Kate. "What's going on?"

"Oh, thank God you're here, Victoria. I wanted to talk to you."

Her eyes widen a bit in surprise before setting into exasperation. "Fina-fucking-ly. Kate, you go on ahead. I'm going to be late for the next class, I think. Or I'll skip it altogether." Kate looks concerned by this. "Don't worry. I'm sure nothing will happen. Ain't that right, Nathan?"

Victoria gives her a pointed look and Max is quick to nod in agreement. "I swear I won't do anything shady, Victoria. I just need your help with something _really_ badly."

"Is this something other than the obvious thing I've been chasing you about all week?" Victoria says snippily. Max nods. "I'm guessing it's something that can't be discussed in public too. I guess we'll have to go somewhere out of the way for privacy too."

Max bites her lips. "Well, we're pretty close to the dorms, we can just use your room."

"You can't come into my room."

"Oh." She blinks. "Why not? We can use my room if you like but it's only across from yours."

Victoria narrows her eyes suspiciously. "Your room is not across from mine. Your room is across the campus in the boys' dorms."

A pause occurs wherein Max nearly facepalms. How could she have forgotten that _of course_ her room is currently not hers. She laughs nervously and tries to play it off.

"O-oh, right. Sorry, forgot."

"Victoria." Kate calls. "Maybe you should put off this talk until after class. We have to talk to Max, remember?"

"I don't want to talk to her." Victoria snaps making Max flinch. "She made her choice."

"But I told you-!"

"It doesn't matter what you say. That fucking hipster obviously cares too much about her precious, dirty punk so she can fuck off to that landfill and stay there with her. I'll do this whole thing on my own."

At Kate's pleading look, Victoria growls, "Stop that! Would you just go ahead to class already? If that waif hipster is there, tell her I know she intended to choose Price from the beginning so I don't need her and don't bother talking to me ever again."

"That's not true!" Max cries. "It was really hard to choose!" Victoria and Kate looks at her in surprise. "I mean, uh, that…she obviously…a hard time?"

"Something is wrong here." Victoria says. "I thought something was off about you from the beginning and now this. How the hell do you supposedly know how Max feels? How much do you know?"

Sighing, Max glances around to make no one is listening, then says quietly, "Would you believe it if I said I was Max?"

Kate's mouth drops open as Victoria's lips turn up in a disbelieving look.

"Prove it." Victoria says. "No, wait, what the hell am I saying? Of course this is bullshit. Look, Nate, I don't know-"

"Sorry Max, no secrets."

Confusion settles over Kate as Victoria stops instantly. The latter's eyes widen dramatically and her knees weaken. Kate had to quickly grab ahold of Victoria to stop her from falling over.

"Tell me something else." Victoria says weakly.

"You guys bought me GHB to help set a savepoint for me to use my retry powers."

Kate shakes her head in disbelief as Victoria closes her eyes as if to pray for strength. Without prompt, Max continues bringing up various things that happened to them over the past few days. Neither girl responds to Max anymore, though.

At last, Victoria holds up a hand. When she opens her eyes again, it's almost as if she aged a decade.

"Max, please…how the _fuck_ did this happen? Why are you...Nathan?"

"I don't know. I woke up like this."

"You just woke up like that." Victoria repeats blankly. "And what of Price? Who is she?"

"I woke up alone. I'm guessing Chloe is at home."

"No, this isn't happening. This can't be real." Kate suddenly says shaking her head. Her eyes are still in a state of disbelief.

Victoria might have tried to reassure her but she herself is suddenly at a loss for words. Max can't exactly blame either of them – this might be how she would react if Nathan suddenly came up and said he was really Kate.

" _Guys_." Max says with urgency. "I'll try to explain as much as I can, but can we go somewhere now? People are staring at us."

It is true. Numerous people have passed them looking curiously at the three. Max had to regulate the sound of her voice as people near and passes them, but neither Kate nor Victoria bothered to at all. The random passerby might think she was telling them about the death of a relative with the things they're saying and the way they look.

Victoria glances around scowling. She nods in consent. "Alright, lets go, uh, to the parking lot. Kate, are you coming?" She looked unsure for a moment before nodding. "Alright, lets go."

They all walk to the parking lot with Victoria leading the way. Max remained at Kate's side, though not like normal as the latter keeps a noticeable gap between them. Internally, she wonders what must be going through Kate's mind. To see Nathan Prescott come up and claim he is someone else.

The parking lot was completely lifeless, though that didn't stop Victoria from looking around.

"Max, do you have the keys to Nate's truck?"

"Yeah, I used it to drive back here."

"Drive back? Where were- nevermind, explain it all in a bit. Lets just get in then." They pile into Nathan's truck where Victoria takes a deep breath in preparation. "Alright, this should be plenty of privacy. Now then, start from the beginning. No wait, even before that."

Victoria sighs again. "I'm probably going to regret this, but start from the last time we've seen you – at Price's house."

Max gulps. "There isn't really much to tell. After you, uh, left, nothing much really happened. Chloe came back and I wanted to talk, but she didn't. Instead, we both went straight to bed."

"When I woke up, I found myself in Nathan's body in his truck thirty minutes away from Blackwell in the middle of nowhere. I drove here using his GPS and…that's it."

"That's it?" She asks scowling. "Nothing it that told us what caused this."

"Right." Max gives a nervous smile. "I came finding you because I was hoping _you_ could offer an explanation."

Victoria laughs sardonically. "I could hardly grasp this whole retry business, Max. Body-switching is just way out of my league. Are you sure nothing happened at all? If you want me to give you an explanation, be more detailed. Tell me _everything_."

"I'm not sure what to tell, Victoria. I think I said everything."

"After we left, you said Price came back and you went straight to bed. Are you sure nothing happened in-between? Did the two of you say or do _anything_ at all?"

Remembering the night before made Max feel awful. Some things did happen but not exactly the kind of stuff that she wanted to reveal. Unfortunately, she may not have a choice now.

"W-well, we did say some things and I went to sleep using one of the sleeping bags you guys were going to use."

"What did the two of you say?"

She bites her lips. "Is it _really_ necessary to know this?"

"Do you really want an explanation?"

Sighing, Max forces out, "Alright, we did say some things. When Chloe came back, I asked her to talk between the two of us. She said she didn't want to talk and just wanted to sleep."

"I…pressed her, maybe a little too hard, and she snapped at me. She said that she wishes I 'wasn't me' for once. It hurt my feelings a lot." Max inhales a bit. "After that, I went straight to sleep."

Kate looks at her sympathetically. "Max, I'm sorry…"

Victoria bites her lips a little. "Maybe I'm the one who should apologize. It was kind of my fault for, uh, outing you." Then she looks up crossly. "Had you gone with me instead, that would not have happened."

"Victoria, now is not the time for that." Kate says firmly. "We will have to talk about that later but, now, this is what we need to focus on."

"I'm just saying the truth. She could have been driven home in a nice car to Blackwell to sleep well. Instead, she stuck around to get yelled at. All for a complete asshole too. Sounds to me like Max reaped that she sowed."

Max averts her eyes flinching at each sentence. She didn't think it was fair; even knowing what would have happened, she would have stayed anyway. Chloe needed her.

"I don't think you should be throwing stones, Victoria." Kate says angrily. Victoria gazes at her steadily. " _You_ have a lot of bad karma yourself and you might want some sympathy if the day comes when God decides it's time for you to own up to your past. I pray others will act more kindly than you are right now."

There is a silence wherein Victoria assesses Kate unblinkingly. Then a smirk comes onto her face.

"The kitten grows a spine. Finally. Apparently, all she needed was to protect big sis." Victoria licks her lips. "Alright, enough of this. We're here to solve a problem. So now you went to sleep. Did anything happen between the time you went to sleep and when you woke up as Nathan?"

She looks up and takes some breaths. Once ready, she continues though in a more subdued voice.

"I didn't wake up at all during the night, if that's what you mean, but I did have a dream."

"Describe it."

"It was…" She takes a moment to think on how to describe it. "a sort of disaster dream. I've had it twice before, I think. This time, my dream started with me walking through Arcadia Bay and everything was completely destroyed. I mean, like rubble and debris everywhere. There were also bodies."

"Somehow, I then got transported to Blackwell. That was destroyed too. Lastly, I got transported to the Arcadia Lighthouse. That was intact, but when I went to the top, I, uh…"

"Go on." Victoria prods.

"I…I saw your bodies. You, Kate, and Chloe. It was pretty horrible." Max grimaces from the recollection. "Then out of nowhere, this massive tornado appears and begins tearing apart everything. I tried to protect your bodies, but I…I guess I lost hope."

She takes another breath. "I decided it wasn't worth trying or at least my dream self decided. I took Nathan's gun from your purse and shot myself with it. That's when the dream ends."

Victoria takes a moment to digest all of this. "That was a bit more than I expected." She sighs. "Would it be a bit too presumptuous to think you killing yourself with Nathan's gun is the source of this? It's the only link I can see."

"I didn't really think about it." Max admitted.

"Well, it's a theory anyway, but no evidence at all. It could be a dozen other things. Maybe your emotional state after last night caused some sort of side effect and you body switch with the largest caused of your issues. Nathan, of course."

"It could be something unrelated altogether." Kate mutters audibly. "Maybe she could do this all along and simply didn't know it. Maybe she accidentally activated this power while asleep?"

"God, every day brings a hundred new questions. Have we even answered a single question we had so far?"

"We have a lot of information with no way to connect them together yet, but we will." Kate says confidently. "This…is a blessing, I think."

"It…is?" Max says doubtfully. "How?"

"You're Nathan!" At Max's confused look, Kate continues, "With your appearance, we can now access new places that we couldn't before and more easily. That barn you talked about before? We can just walk right in with no problems now, right?"

"Yeah." Max says. "Yeah, you're right. This might have some good points."

"Don't count your blessing yet." Victoria cuts in. "Don't you two realize the obvious issue?"

"What?" Kate asks.

"What if she can't change back?"

A chill come over Max. Kate's eyes widen a bit and she glances at her friend.

"Don't say that. We don't know if this will last or not. Also, maybe the retry power will bring her back to normal."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that if Max retries, she might appear back into her original body."

"We are _not_ doing that!" Victoria snarls. "Don't you realize you're messing with somebody's life right now? We don't know what will happen and we can't take that risk."

"I don't mean doing it intentionally, of course! What kind of person do you think I am? I just mean if it should happen, this issue might be solved."

Victoria sits back huffing. "Lets not talk about that anymore. For now, lets just do what we can. To start, you are right about the advantages and we can take advantage right now. Max, turn out your pockets."

"What?"

"Turn out your pockets." Victoria repeats as she rifles through the truck's storage compartments. "Nathan might have some useful information on him."

Numbly, she follows the instructions and searches through Nathan's pockets. There wasn't anything other than candy wrappers, pieces of trash, his wallet, and his cell phone. The wallet only has credit cards, IDs, and a bulging amount of cash, but no actual thing of use.

She turns her attention to the phone and, of course, it's PIN locked.

"The only thing of use is his cell phone. By chance, you wouldn't know the PIN to it, would you, Victoria?"

"I don't." Victoria says as she shoves various objects off her lap. "The stuff in his truck compartments are useless too. Damn it."

"So we got nothing?" Kate asks.

"Not a damn thing."

"What do we do then?"

"I don't know." Victoria says laying her head on the dashboard. "God, I feel so exhausted. I just got up but I want to go straight back to bed and forget all of this."

"Victoria…"

"Shut up, Kate. I just had a terrible night, I now have to deal with this bullshit, and to top it off, I'm probably going to get chewed out for missing my first class. Just let me lie here for a few minutes."

Max looks down at her hands. This whole idea had been poorly thought out. She came here hoping Victoria could provide some answers that she is unable to figure out herself, but all she really did was caused trouble.

The other girl's word comes back to her in painful clarity and she can't help but think how much all of this might have been avoided has she simply been upfront with Chloe. Yet another part of her keeps insisting that she did the right thing. That saying too much would have caused too much pain.

But how does she believe that part when this disaster is in front of her?

This had all been a terrible mistake. She shouldn't have even shown her face until she solved this, this ridiculous body switch problem. She wishes she could simply reverse time – _without having to die_ – and rethink her terrible list of decisions.

"Hey, is that who I think it is?" Kate asks.

They look up trying to see who she is referring to. Max's eyes widen and her stomach sinks a bit as she sees an old rusted truck appears and parks haphazardly. Of course, Chloe steps out a moment later and looks around seeming unsure.

"Oh fucking great. Now Price is here too. Can my day get any better?"

"Max, lets go see her." Kate says. "We can find out what's going on in her end."

She feels frozen. Chloe's words from last night return to her mind and she genuinely feels frightened. It's not enough with all the trouble she caused everyone, especially Chloe, but now she has to face her with this body? Especially knowing what Nathan did to Chloe? The mortifying thought freezes her to the spot.

"Max? What's wrong?"

Kate is looking at her in concerned. Her silence also attracts Victoria's stare and she wilts even further. Her heart races and her lungs seem to tighten in her chest. A light-headed feeling overcomes her.

"Max. Calm down." Kate says soothingly. "You look like you're about to faint."

"Price is leaving." Victoria mutters looking away. "Now where the hell is she going?"

She glances out the window to see that Victoria is right. Chloe is heading in the direction of the main school building. As she moves further away, Max feels the tightness in her chest loosens slightly. She swipes at her forehead noting how sweaty she is.

Kate looks out the window. "She looks like she's heading to the school."

"She has no business there. Why the hell would she go inside?"

"Maybe…she's actually going to the dorms?" Kate says unsure.

"Oh hell no. She is going to fuck up my room, isn't she?" Victoria hisses angrily.

"What? Why would you think that?"

"Because it's what I would do. Christ, I'll have to stop it. Maybe knock her teeth out while I'm at it."

"Could you two just not fight for one minute? Victoria? _For goodness' sake_ , Max, c'mon!"

Victoria opens the car door and hurries out as Kate calls after her. The latter hurriedly rushes out after her expecting Max to follow along. Problem was that she remained frozen in the car seat even after Victoria and Kate left.

After a few minutes, she got herself under control but rather than going after them, she sits there in a confused daze. Almost without thought, Max takes out the car key, starts the truck, and reverses the truck out of parking. Then she drives away.

Kate had to rush disgracefully to keep up with the much taller Victoria who covers distance much more easily. The latter nearly slams the door to the dorms open and Kate could hear her yell out.

She comes inside the dorms herself just as Victoria is stomping up to a glaring Chloe.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing here? What are you planning?"

"Why do you always have to be in my fucking business, Victoria?" Chloe snarls. "I'm here to see Max. So fuck off and leave me alone."

"What's the matter? Had a fight, did we?" Victoria mocks.

Chloe clenches her teeth, but ignores her turning to walk away. Kate rushes up beside Victoria and, upon catching her breath, calls out to Chloe.

"Wait! You're going in the wrong direction!"

She stares at Kate. "What?"

"You actually passed Max. She was in the parking lot with us."

Leaning against the wall, Chloe huffs in obvious frustration. "Unbelievable. She was there and I hadn't even noticed. Fuck's sake." She looks at them. "I didn't see you two either. Where the hell were the three of you in the lot?"

"We were, uh, inside Nathan's truck."

Her mouth drops open in disbelief. "Wha- why? Why were you in _Nathan's_ truck?"

"There's been…a little complication." Kate laughs nervously. "You're not going to believe it until you see it. Max should be here in a bit and she'll explain it."

Problem was that Max didn't come. As the minutes pass, concern slowly lights up everyone's face. Victoria walks back and opens the door to the dorms looking outside.

"Either Max is the slowest person at Blackwell or she's not coming at all."

"What? Why? Where is she then?"

"I'm guessing the parking lot still?"

"Then that's where I'm going." Chloe says pushing pass Victoria.

It didn't take any time for them to follow along behind her. When they came back to the parking lot, Chloe is noticeably more aggravated. Victoria looks around in confusion and is speechless.

Kate puts their thoughts to words, "Nathan's truck is gone."

Victoria leans against a wall and massage her forehead. "I can't believe she just left. Without saying a word. What the _fuck_."

"Maybe…maybe Max felt she needed to." Kate says hesitantly. "She didn't look too well before."

Victoria averts her eyes guiltily. "Goddamn it."

Chloe bites her lips looking aggravating. "Damn. I just missed her." She turns to them. "So can someone explain this to me? What do you mean she didn't look too well? And what's this complication you talked about?"

Looking unsure, Kate nonetheless acquiesces seeing as Max is not there, "I think we should head back to the dorms. My room?"

Chloe nods and begins the trek back without another word. Kate looks at Victoria in concern.

"Are you coming too?"

"No, I don't think so."

"You're…not?"

"Are you surprised?" Victoria says emotionless. "I said it last night. This whole Hardy Boys shit we were pulling is not working out. I'm now forced back because of this new bullshit, but once that is fixed, I'm out."

"What about Max?"

"She's gone. Once I figure out how to get ahold of her, then I'll do something." Victoria turns around. "I'm going to class now. Have fun with Price."

She walks off not waiting for a response. Kate feels a terrible headache coming from seeing the disaster that is their group. Sighing, she walks back to the dorms. Inside, she found Chloe standing near the entrance. She nods to the other girl and leads them to her room.

Inside, Chloe sits on her couch while Kate prepares tea for the both of them with her electric kettle.

"Is green tea alright, Chloe?"

"Huh? Oh, uh, yeah."

After she sets down two cups of tea, she sits besides Chloe. "Alright, where do we begin? I guess the complication should go first."

"Max is…I don't even know how to really explain this. I guess I'll be straightforward, alright? Max has switched bodies with Nathan."

Dead silence ensues. Chloe's face remained blank before morphing into incredulity followed by some kind of misery then into disbelieving acceptance. Kate watches this hoping that she wouldn't lose yet another person to this mess.

At last, Chloe speaks, "How? Why?"

"We know neither. We don't know _anything_. Max says she woke up like that and we only discovered it when she drove here in Nathan's truck a bit before you came. We were only making guesses with no information at all."

"What were the guesses?" Kate's hesitated. "What? Tell me."

"We think this change may have had something to do with your fight last night and the following dream."

Chloe purses her lips then deflates. "So she told you. Yeah, that's why I'm here. I felt awful for saying the things I did. When I woke up, she was gone, though, so I thought maybe she took the bus back here. I came to apologize."

"I think Max would have been happy to know that."

"Yeah." Chloe looks up. "What's that part about a dream, though?"

"She said that she had a dream where Arcadia Bay had been destroyed by some kind of storm. She found…ahem, our bodies at a lighthouse and ends up committing suicide with Nathan's gun. That's the only link we have between the two events."

Chloe sighs. "My God. So she can go back in time and switch bodies with other people? What else can that girl do?"

"That's not important now." Kate says. "The important question is where's Max right now?"

"You got me, Kate. I do have a few ideas, though." Chloe says getting up. "I'm going to go try them."

"I'm coming with you."

She stops. "Don't you have classes?"

"I do, but…I also think Max needs me." Kate nods. "Before we caught up with you, I think she was having a panic attack. She's in a bad way. I want to see her."

"Right." Chloe sighs heavily. "Alright, I'm thinking the first place to try is the lighthouse. Lets get going."

Kate nods getting up. Internally, she hopes Max is alright right now.

Max…is not alright. After she drove in a direction chosen at random until she was well out of sight of Arcadia Bay, she stops on the road shoulders and lay her head on the steering wheel feeling heavy and numb.

Even as she did it, she knew she shouldn't have driven off like that but she couldn't help it. Everything is just so wrong and nothing makes sense. The progress they made so well before is now falling apart at the seams as the group breaks up and everybody is tense around each other.

For ten minutes, she just wanted to be alone. Not thinking about anything.

Except ten minutes turned into twenty which turned into thirty. It has now been an hour since she stopped here and she still felt like she just wanted to be alone and for the world to disappear so that she didn't have to worry about anything else.

Internally, she recognizes that this isn't healthy and she should become productive but, sometimes, doing what you know you should be doing isn't so easy.

With effort, she lifts her head and stares in the rearview mirror. Of course, Nathan's face looks back at her. For a moment, though, Max is struck by how pitiable the face looks. This must be the face Nathan makes when he feels overwhelmed by the world as she feels now.

Uncomfortably, she notes that this is not the first time she seen this look on his face.

Nathan has always come off as weird and threatening to her even before the whole gun incident. Primarily because of his association with the Vortex Club and Victoria Chase, but also gave off this strange aura that made Max nervous. She wonders if this is the person Victoria sees and why she's determined to help him.

Max shakes it off. No amount of personal troubles can excuse the actions he did. She knows for a fact he harmed Chloe, there's a good possibility he did the same to Kate, and they may not be the only ones. She can't forgive him.

The strain of anger that flows through her at this thought actually helps to rejuvenate her a bit. She still felt awful as hell, but also a little better. At least enough to do something other than sit here wallowing in depression.

The problem is what to do?

Before this whole…change, there was an obvious path to take even ignoring the whole group troubles. David was going to give her his information files on which would have hopefully given her some leads on where to go next.

She can't approach him in this body. It would take a whole day just to explain things assuming he doesn't have her locked up.

Thinking for a long while, the only thought that comes up and one that keeps coming back to her even as she tries to come up with other ideas is to talk to Frank. If she were to ask him what kind of drugs she bought before, he would say, right? So long as he thinks she's really Nathan, he wouldn't bother to hide it.

But Frank is intimidating to her. The few times she met him, Victoria did all of the talking. She's not sure if she could do it by herself. Worse, what if he suspects something is off. What would he do?

Her thoughts are interrupted by the blast of someone shouting 'YO YO YO PHONE IS RINGING'. The shock of it startles Max and she snaps her head around before she realizes it's coming from her pocket. Nathan's cell phone.

She takes out the phone and hits the volume key to silence the obnoxious ringtone in annoyance. Afterwards, she looks at the displayed name. _Sean Prescott_. That's Nathan's father, right? Why did he list his own father by his full name instead of 'dad'?

Uncertain whether she should answer it or not, the decision is made for her when it stops ringing. Max stares at it a moment long before placing it down. She returns to her thoughts but is almost immediately interrupted again by that horrible ringtone. She picks up the phone again to see that it is Sean Prescott again.

Hesitantly, Max presses the answer button. "Hello?"

" _Didn't I tell you before that you pick up whenever I call you?"_

She flinches at the menacing tone. "I'm s-sorry, dad. I was, uh, caught up in something."

" _How are the projects coming along? Is everything going well?"_

"Oh, uh, yes, they're going well. My teachers like my work and I'm getting good grades."

A pause. _"Hmph, that's fine. Be a bit more careful with what you say, though."_

Confusion crosses Max unsure of what she said wrong. "I'm sorry."

" _Anyway, I just talked to my contact. He's going to talk to our contact. Afterwards, our contact is going to want to talk to you. Make sure you're available to answer."_

"Okay, dad. I'll be here."

Another pause. _"Something is off with you. Are you sure nothing is wrong?"_

Nervously, Max responds, "Yes, everything is alright. I'm just feeling a little sick."

" _Are you taking your medication like you should?"_

"I just took some recently. Maybe they're just taking a bit to kick in."

" _They're taking a bit to kick in because you took them late again."_ Sean responds angrily. _"Goddamn it, boy, I told you to keep up with those. You lose it whenever you go off those and you always fuck up. Don't let me catch you doing it again."_

"I'm s-sorry. I promise I'll keep up."

" _Christ almighty. Just make sure you're good and ready when our contact calls."_

The phone hangs up. Max breathes easier once he does so and several thoughts come to her.

The first is that Nathan's father sounds like a terrible man. Just in that short conversation, he became intense and critical. She can't imagine how he must act when spoken to in person and at length.

The second is that that is the weirdest phone conversation Max ever had. Everything was so vague and sounded sinister. Of course, she was vague too but she had to be because she had no idea what Nathan's dad is talking about. What is up with this 'contact' business he kept bringing up? Who is supposed to call her?

She waited in tense silence. When that ringtone came up again, she immediately looks at the contact name.

"…'MJ'?" Max says the name aloud. "Michael Jackson is the contact? No, can't be. He's dead. Uh, Michael Jordan?"

She presses the 'answer' button. "Hello?"

" _Nathan. I think I found a new interest."_

…that voice. Mark Jefferson.

" _Come to the meeting place."_

"Which meeting place?"

The voice becomes cold. _"The only meeting place we have. I hope you aren't stupid enough to forget even that."_ Max's mouth drops at the sheer menace and belittling tone. _"I have some time, but it is short. Do not delay. This time, when you come, don't leave your car outside like an idiot. Park it_ _ **inside**_ _."_

He hangs up. Max feels tension rising to the surface again. What meeting place is he talking about? And what interest does he have and why is he sharing it with Nathan? What will happen if she doesn't show up?

An inkling rises in her. He mentions that she should park Nathan's truck 'inside' instead of outside? That sounds like a garage, but it doesn't add up. Why would Mr. Jefferson insists on her parking inside unless specifically leaving outside is bad somehow?

Slowly, the thought comes to her that there was one particular place where leaving a car outside turned out to be a bad idea. The barn.

Is it possible he's talking about that? But what possible interest could he have there? Does it involve those files they found there somehow?

On the face of it, it seems silly. There must be a thousand places and situations where one should park a car 'inside' instead of leaving it outside. On the other hand, the barn is the only place where she knows Nathan and Mark Jefferson is connected somehow. Plus there's also the fact that she has no other clues where he is referring to and it seems he has no intention of telling her.

It seems like a long shot, but Max decides to take it. She puts the car into drive and start heading to the barn.

Getting there took a bit of an effort as Max had to find her way back mainly by memory. She had no idea how Kate found it in the first place and she foolishly didn't bother to ask for an address or coordinates. For this reason, she ended up having to use landmarks and even the sight of the horizon at points.

She let out a relieved sigh when she encountered the dirt path that leads to the barn.

As she pulls up to the barn, she is surprised to see a man there. She is further surprised to see the man is Mark Jefferson. In her deepest heart of hearts, she perhaps wanted to believe that her admired teacher didn't really have anything to do with this but it now seems indisputable that there is some link between him and the Prescotts.

What that link is remains to be seen but everything about this just seem so shady.

Mark opens the barn door and waves her in to park beside his car. She does as instructed and gets out waiting silently unsure of what to do next. He closes the barn doors and goes up to her.

"Good. You're here. I have maybe an hour before I have to go. So we'll have to be quick."

Without bothering to hear a response, Mr. Jefferson past her. Max hesitates a moment before following him. He goes to the corner past the platform with the tractor on it. Max passes it flinching remembering her previous death.

He moves up to a random area and, to her surprise, he bends down and brushes away some hay. Her mouth nearly drops when some kind of trap door appears.

Mr. Jefferson pulls out his keys and unlocks the padlock. Throwing the lock onto the ground off to the side, he opens the trap door, and walks down a set of stairs. Max stood there frozen in surprise, but quickly shakes it off and follows after him.

Below was like some kind of doomsday bunker. A plan and short hallway leads to a door that looks like the kind bank vaults might have in movies. It even has a wheel handle and a keypad lock next to it.

Max came up just in time to see Mr. Jefferson enter '5 4 2' into the keypad. She quickly thinks up mnemonics to ensure she remembers that and also promises herself to write it down somewhere as soon as she leaves. That code is going to be necessary.

He opens the thick steel door and walks in leaving it opened for her. This time, Max didn't follow closely behind him. The sight just slows her down forcing her to take in everything. What the hell is all this? Is this further part of the Prescott strange obsession with storing materials or is this their plan for some kind of doomsday evacuation?

To the right wall were shelves lined with water, food, paper towels, and some random supplies reminding Max of David's garage. The wall adjacent to the shelves had a large sink with solvents, duct tape, and other household supplies.

The same thought that occurred to her upon seeing this bunker is the same as when she saw David's garage: that this didn't make for a very good doomsday place. The only difference is that there are opposite problems. David had plenty of food and water but his garage is hardly a safe place. This bunker is a _very_ safe place but it seems to have a small amount of food and water.

Beside this area is some kind of clear curtain where she can see the outline of Mr. Jefferson leafing through some binders. She walks in afterwards and is yet again blown away by surprise.

It is like she walked into some kind of photography studio. Immediately to her right is some kind of giant, sophisticated looking machine she didn't even realize was a photo printer until she saw the branding name. The walls were lined with artwork she didn't recognize but gravely reminded her of those she found in Nathan's room. To her left was an area full of professional grade lighting equipment, tripods, cameras, and more.

Max thought this is quite possibly the _worst_ safety bunker possible. Then an unsettling idea occurs to her: perhaps this place wasn't meant for what she thinks it does.

Her eyes flit to the metal cabinets and computer desktop near the corner of the room. She immediately gravitates towards the cabinet nearest her intending to look through the binders.

"Nathan, get over here."

She hesitates, but knowing what kind of position she's in, she does as told. Max moves away from the cupboard and walks up to Mr. Jefferson who hands her a binder.

"This is her." He said staring at her intently. "Well, what do you think?"

Opening the binder, Max is confused when it is empty. She looks on the outside and notices a white strip on the side marked 'Victoria'. As in Victoria Chase? What the hell is this binder for?

"Uh, I…don't know what to think." She says placing it on the computer desk.

"Hm." He looks amused. "You're taking this better than I thought, but not as good as I had hoped. I know she's your friend, Nathan, but there's a real good chance I might not get my first choice of Max."

Max…as in her? What does he want with her?

"If so, this is intended to be my backup and it should be a relatively easy task for you since she's your friend. You two are close."

She did not like this line of talk. She really did not like it.

"What do you intend to do?"

It was a bad question – the kind that reveals her ignorance of the situation, but she couldn't help it. She has to know what exactly is going on here.

Mr. Jefferson doesn't become suspicious, though. Instead, his amusement seems to increase and he cups his chin in thought.

"I was thinking perhaps a 'penitent' position? The idea of the 'distressed damsel' crossed my mind, but it doesn't really fit Victoria, now does it? Maybe I should just go for the classic hogtie."

Max didn't understand what all these terms meant, but the sentiment got through to her and she hates it. She hates it utterly and a loathing for her teacher slowly forms.

"My God, you are sick! If you touch Victoria, I'll-"

He responds coldly, "First off, _you_ are going to be the one to get her, not me. If you want to be the one to put her into the poses, that's fine too. Either way, it's going to happen. Don't forget what kind of position you're in." He lifts his face to stare down at her. "And before you call me 'sick', don't forget that all I do is take the shots. I'm not the murderer here."

Her blood turns cold. 'Murderer'? Nathan actually murdered somebody?

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, Nathan!" He laughs mockingly. "I'm not going to believe you forgot!" Still chuckling, he glances at his wristwatch. "Hm, it's almost time for my class so I have to go now. I'll give you time to prepare. _Prepare_ , not think about it because you _are_ going to do it, and you are going to do it tonight after I announce the winner of the contest."

He didn't wait for her to respond and walks past lightly calling back telling her to remember to put the padlock on when she leaves. Max stood frozen for several minutes as thoughts races through her. Whatever he's planning, he's intends to do it after that 'Everyday Heroes' contest ends.

When his footsteps disappear, she snaps out of her thoughts and races to the cabinets. She searches through the one near the large printer, but it was only camera supplies and binders of sample photography shots.

She went to the computer next. Surprisingly, it was left on and not even password protected, but there were no obvious folders or files that she could see. Frustrated, Max abandoned that idea temporarily to search in the computer desk drawers.

The top drawer was just a bunch of supplies again, but the middle drawer has some letters in it. She notices the top letter is addressed to 'Mr. Prescott' so she takes that first. The letter was from a 'Dr. Jacoby' and it spoke of Nathan's need for psychiatric help but is coming up against his parents' refusal to take a more personal role in his treatment. His doctor was resigning because he felt he couldn't do anything more without their help.

Right now, neither of that surprised Max. She knew Nathan had issues already and, after hearing from his father, she knew his parents probably didn't care.

The next letter had a note attached to it. The note is from Sean Prescott warning Nathan about only calling using disposable phones, never say his name publicly, and some vague mention of setting something up. If the entirety of this bunker and everything she heard wasn't already proof positive there is something horrible going on, this by itself would have raised numerous red flags.

The letter itself was chastising Nathan about the expense and trouble his father went through to get him a tutor for his 'lessons' and that he is expected to learn and fully assist his tutor. It seems obvious the tutor is Jefferson.

One more letter lied in the middle drawer. She picks it up and it nearly bowls her over. It was some kind of cost estimate for this entire bunker and the whole thing apparently comes to a little over $1.3 million. She looks around again and, for the life of her, she can't figure out what about this bunker would make it cost more than building a whole house.

Putting the letters back, she looks in the last desk drawer. There were notebooks and pens – all brand new. Moving away from the computer, there was a large cabinet alongside a smaller one. She goes for the larger one first, but it was mostly useless. The right side contained some kind of entertainment system while the left was soda and beer. There were also notebooks, photography manuals, and more sample shots.

As it turns out, the smaller one was where Max found the real purpose of the bunker and, at last, answers to the many questions that's been floating around in her head.

When she opened it, she nearly groans seeing more binders but stops as soon as she notices the names on the side. Glancing at the binder labeled 'Victoria' on the computer desk, a horrible sense goes through her as she looks back up at the binders in the cabinet.

There were many other names there – all girls.

"Tyra…Beverly…Lola…Suzie…" Max whispers upon seeing each names. Unlike Victoria's binders, these didn't seem empty. "Lynn…Kelly…"

She stops. The next binder was labeled 'Rachel'. It couldn't possible Rachel _Amber_ , could it? The one after that is even more horrifying. It's labeled 'Kate'.

With unsteady hands, Max reaches out and takes the 'Kate' binder. When she opens it, her stomach clenches and her breath is taken away.

The first shot is of Kate Marsh staring with glazed eyes. The same eyes Max had seen in the video. Her hands look like they were bound behind her. There were more shots and all either had Kate with the same eyes or unconscious. Some of the photos clearly show her with her hands and legs bound with duct tape.

A furious feeling arose in her. Mark Jefferson did this. Mark Jefferson and Nathan Prescott. She can't forgive them. She will…she will show this to the police and see them both thrown in jail.

She glances at the cabinet again. There were so many more binders with different girls' names on them. How many had this happened to? Were these binders all of them or are there more hidden elsewhere? Are they all Blackwell girls?

She reaches for the 'Rachel' binder next. In it were photos similar to the ones in the Kate binder. There were a few noticeable different ones, though. In some of them, the girl was clearly sober and looking extremely angry. In some other shots, she was posed next to Nathan himself.

The face resembles the missing posters she has seen around Blackwell and one photo shows her leg with tattoo that resembles a dragon – the missing poster mentions the same tattoo. If there could be any doubt, the photos dispelled them all. There is no doubt that is Rachel Amber herself.

There was one last place to look: the computer. Max goes back to it and begins the arduous process of trying to find where some incriminating evidence might be held.

She was still at it when a loud voice appears nearly making her jump out of the computer seat as she thought Jefferson may have came back. It took a moment before she recognizes the voice saying 'YO YO YO PHONE IS RINGING' and she realized it was Nathan's phone.

She was momentarily afraid it was Nathan's father again, but is surprised when she sees Victoria's name on the phone screen. Thing is that she isn't really sure she wanted to speak to Victoria either. She caused enough trouble for her. Besides, this is not the kind of stuff Max is willing to tell her. How do you tell someone somebody is targeting them for some sick sexual assault?

So she mutes the phone. Eventually, the call hangs up and the phone goes dark.

Max was about to return to searching the computer when a different but equally obnoxious ringtone appears and the phone lights up. It's a text message. She still doesn't know the phone's PIN, but the text is short enough that she can read it without going into the phone.

_Victoria: Pick up the phone, Max_

A second later, the phone begins ringing again and, of course, it's Victoria. She hesitates again. Maybe if she keeps this up, Victoria will think she's not there. It stops again. A second later, another text appears.

_Victoria: Max Caulfield, I know you're there_

_Victoria: Pick up the fucking phone!_

The phone begins ringing again. She hesitates but stops herself from answering. It stops and, once again, a text arrives.

_Victoria: Max, I need to talk to you_

_Victoria: Please_

Another call. She hesitates again, but this time, Max picks it up and presses 'Answer' immediately.

"Victoria?"

A sigh could be heard. _"You picked up. Where are you right now?"_

"I'm, uh, nowhere special."

" _It must be more special than Blackwell considering the way_ _ **you just drove off**_ _."_

She flinches. "I'm s-sorry."

Victoria sighs. _"I'm not angry…actually, yes, I am. I'm pissed off as hell, Max, but I know it's partially my fault."_

Max's mouth drops in surprise at that.

" _I shouldn't have said all that shit to you. I was angry, alright? I was…fuck it, I was_ _ **jealous**_ _. Look, Max, I need you to help me and I want to help you too. Damn it. What I'm trying to say is I'm sorry and can you give me another chance?"_

Each sentence only made her more surprised. "Victoria, what…brought this on? This morning, you sounded as if you didn't want anything else to do with me and you were ready to do everything yourself."

" _It's…it's because I couldn't stop thinking about you. All day, I've been snapping at people left and right, but you were all that's on my mind. It's fucking Rachel all over again. I…look, I don't want to give this up without a fight, alright?"_

"B-but I'm not-"

" _You don't know. Yes, I remember. Well, you know what? I'm going to help you make the decision. So Max, tell me where you are right now and let get together so we can crack this case. What do you say?"_

She sits there temporarily stunned into speechlessness. The loss actually gave her time to think and the feeling from this morning came back more strongly than before that she wanted Victoria's help too. That the blonde is capable of doing so much more than Max can partially because of her connections but also because she's so much stronger.

She wanted her help.

That acknowledgement gives Max back her voice. "Victoria, I want your help too."

" _Good. Now tell me where you are."_

A bit of tension rose. "I think you should see it instead of me telling you. The place you have to come to is…well, do you remember that barn we went into?"

" _During a retry? The one we got into a shootout in? You're there?"_

"Yeah, it's…a long story, but I'll tell you everything once you get here."

" _Damn. I'll have to miss Mark's class then."_ Max breathes more easily hearing that. _"No biggie. Where is it, though?"_

She paused. That's right – Victoria only knew the location in the retry.

"I sort of got here using landmarks and my blurry memories. I don't think I can give you an address. I don't think there is even one, really. I'll try to give you the directions as best as I can."

A groan. _"I have a better idea. I know you can't get into his phone, but there's another way. Nathan and I sometimes video chat using this app and it gives me his location when we use it. I'm going to send you a chat, press 'Respond', and I'll copy down the address."_

She hangs up before Max could reply. A moment later a chat call comes through and she does as instructed. Victoria's face pops up, but shortly afterwards, it cuts off. A text message then arrives.

_Victoria: Got the location. I'll be there._

She stares around when a realization hits her and she jumps into a flurry of activity. She places the 'Rachel' binders back where they were and hides the 'Kate' and 'Victoria' binder in another cabinet.

Max had been nearly overwhelmed upon learning all of this and she wants to ease them into this too. If they, especially Kate, catch sight of the binders first, it might be far too much.

Running various possible scenarios in her mind, Max prepares various speeches and explanation practicing so that she isn't a stuttering mess when they get here. She was still practicing when another call from Victoria came.

"Victoria?"

" _I'm here. You know I nearly thought it was a mistake when the GPS told me to turn onto a middling dirt road? I also thought of turning back until I saw Nathan's truck. Where are you?"_

"Hold on. I'll be right out."

She takes a deep breath in preparation then walks out the bunker and runs up the stairs. Victoria is leaning against her car looking around but stops when she catches sight of Max. She moves rapidly forward and grabs Max into a hug.

"Damn it, Max, don't fucking do that again."

"Victoria? What do you-?"

"I'm _sorry_ , okay? I'm sorry I got you in trouble with Price and I'm sorry I said all those things. I was just so pissed off. When you suddenly disappeared, though, and I found out Kate and Price were going around searching for you, I started losing my mind with worry. I knew it was my fault and I was upset but-"

It was rare. Extraordinarily rare. Victoria Chase babbling because she didn't know what to say. As clumsy as she is, though, Max knew exactly what to do. She envelops Victoria into a hug.

"It's okay. I'm partly to blame for all this. I promise you, Victoria, it'll be alright."

"…God, this is so much weirder to take when you're in Nathan's body."

Max had forgotten that part again. Something else also occurs to her. She looks around confirming that Kate, in fact, wasn't with her. So did she leave somewhere with Chloe?

"What are you looking for?"

"Kate. I had thought that she would be with you."

Victoria scowls. "She went off with Price. Speaking of which, I should text her to let her know I found you."

"No, wait!" Victoria looks at her in surprise. "If you do, they might come. Before that happens, I want to show you what I found."

Victoria looks at her steadily. "This is going to be some serious shit, isn't it? Alright, Max, lead the way."

Max led her through the barn first intending to ease her into everything as planned. She points out the spots important in the retry and also allows her time to leaf through the various supplies left by the Prescotts. Victoria nods at each already familiar with the story.

Once she ran out of things to talk about, she takes a deep breath and leads her to the hidden bunker stairwell.

"What the hell is this?"

"It's a secret bunker."

"I don't remember you mentioning this when you talked about the barn."

"We didn't find it then. I actually just discovered it today."

Victoria purses her lips. "Price was right. Nobody would protect something as stupid as a barn in the middle of nowhere so viciously if there wasn't something here." She pauses. "I'm guessing whatever that thing you're procrastinating in showing me is down there?"

Max grimaces. "Yeah, it's…pretty bad."

"I'm prepared to see body parts. Bring it."

She averts her eyes. "You might find something worse."

That made Victoria tense up even more. They walk along to the vault door which Max left wide opened. The blonde's eyes were already wide by this point and they nearly bulge upon walking inside.

"What the fuck is this?" She looks at the food shelves. "Water? Cereal?" She then goes to the main 'photography' area. "What the hell kind of place is this?"

Then she saw the artwork. "Hey, those look kind of like the ones in Nathan's room." Her eyes widen. "Max, who does this bunker belong to?"

She gives it a moment of thought. "Well, it belongs to Sean Prescott technically, but I don't know if _he_ uses it."

Victoria looks at Max, then she takes a deep breath. "Alright, who does use it?"

"Mark Jefferson and Nathan Prescott."

"Oh God." She sways on her feet. Max moved to hold her up but Victoria waves her back. Instead, she staggers over to the computer desk and sits down. "I was afraid of this ever since you said you heard Mark's name from those thug guards here. How did you find out?"

"Jefferson himself told me to come here. The way he talked also made it clear Nathan comes here often and helps him too."

"Help him with what?" Max bites her lips. "Damn it, Max, c'mon."

"He…he takes photos. Of drugged and tied up girls."

Victoria's mouth drops. "He takes photos of drugged and bound girls. You're talking about Mark Jefferson – our teacher – and Nathan Prescott. _Both_ did this?"

She nods. "Both did and still do. I…If you promise not to get too upset, I will show you something very bad."

"I'm tough, Max. Give it to me."

As genuinely tough as she thinks Victoria is, she doesn't think anything Victoria saw in life will prepared her for what she will see here. All the same, she can't hide this from her now.

Max walks to the cabinet and takes out a random binder. She puts it before Victoria who glances at Max before opening the binder. She didn't know what she expected…but Victoria actually handled this far better than Max did.

To her surprise, the blonde turned page after page without much shock. Her face displayed visible signs of anger, but was otherwise normal. At last, she finishes looking through the binder, closes it, and leans back sighing.

"You're…you're not shocked and disgusted?"

"Max, I just discovered a hidden bunker operated by my famous teacher and my best friend where they drug and photograph women. Of course I'm shocked and disgusted. I'm just handling it as best as I can."

She stares at Victoria in admiration. "Wowsers, you _are_ tough. Maybe you can see the things here fine."

"Give them to me."

She contemplates which of the big three to show Victoria and ultimately decides on the 'Kate' binder. She takes it out and lets Victoria leafs through it.

"This was what happened to Kate after the party?"

"Yes, it must be." Max nods. "Look at her eyes. Those are not normal, Victoria."

"Yeah, it's the same eyes again. I know it." Victoria closes the binder closing her eyes. "God, I'm a fucking idiot. How could I have not seen it before? I owe Kate big for this. Goddamn it."

Max takes out the 'Victoria' binder and puts it on the desk. Victoria looks at it, grimaces, and her eyes seem to lose a bit of light.

"I was a target?"

"Not was. Is. They were aiming for you after the contest tonight. It seem-" Max swallows. "-Jefferson originally wanted me, but he thought he couldn't get me so he decided to aim for you instead." She hesitates here. "There's also something else. Jefferson had fully expected Nathan to bring you here himself."

Victoria is silent for a moment. "Do you think he would have done it?"

"Jefferson sounded confident he would. He also said something else. He called Nathan a murderer."

That finally got the shocked expression she was expecting. "Murderer? Who? Who did he kill?"

"I don't know. When I asked, Jefferson just said he doesn't believe I forgot."

"Maybe that means it's recent?" Victoria mutters unsure. "Or maybe it was a big one? Or maybe the only one? Fuck. Wait a minute, how many binders are there?"

Victoria goes up to the cabinet and looks through it herself. "Look at all these fucking binders. Are some of these actually girls I knew? Wait, Beverly? As in Beverly Harper?" She peeks in the binder. " _Fuck!_ It is her!"

She suddenly freezes and grabs a binder. Victoria takes one look before her face twists in disgust. Max already knew which it was.

" _Jesus Christ!_ " Victoria shouts throwing the binder harshly onto the floor. She holds her head and breathes heavily for a moment before snatching it back up. "It's _her_ , Max. This is Rachel Amber!"

"Victoria, I'm…I'm so sorry. You said you hate her, but I know that, somewhere deep inside, she still meant something to you."

The blonde has trouble speaking for a minute. "Even if…even if I really did completely hate her, Max, she didn't deserve this. Fucking damn it. Look at this shit!" She stops on one of the pages. "Nathan is posing next to her…he's complicit in all of this. Everything."

Victoria falls back into the computer chair. "Fuck. He can't be helped, can he, Max?"

"I…don't think so, Victoria."

"How could he do this, Max? How could he willingly target _me_?"

The blonde's voice was cracking and her eyes were tearing up. The strongest person Max knew is now on the verge of tears. Even the ever strong Victoria Chase couldn't take this kind of experience without breaking.

Max hugs Victoria. "We don't know if Nathan would have willingly done this. However, he has already done far too much otherwise. Victoria, I…" She stands back. "I'll keep my promise to you. Whatever you want done with Nathan, I'll support you 100%."

Victoria stares at Max in utter surprise. She wipes away at her eyes and puts her hand in head hands. "God, you have such a way of making me feeling guilty all the time, you know that? I just reamed you out this morning and now you're telling me you'll keep the promise you made to me even after learning all _this shit_?"

"Yeah. Do you remember why? Because I think of us as friends. When this is all over, I hope you can keep thinking that way."

Victoria stares down listlessly. "You remember what happens to people who gets close to me, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. Think of me as a second chance."

"Not a second chance, Max. You will be the next among many, many people who got close to me. All of them inevitably get burned. You will be the next." She takes a deep breath. "I'm telling you all this for a reason. I…I think I like you. I'm giving you a chance to run. Run as far away from me as possible."

"You mocked me, you bullied me, you _slapped_ me, your friend shot me and drugged my friends, and there's a hell of a lot more. After all that, I didn't leave yet. Go ahead, Victoria. Do your worst. I'm not going anywhere."

Victoria stares into her eyes and a glimmer of warmth comes into them. "I'm an artist, Max. I'm very fucking creative. You think you've seen the worst? I can always come up with new ways of being a horrible human being."

"I'm still here."

"Alright, it's your life to risk. Also, I'm very possessive. You won't leave? Well, now you can't. You're stuck with me. I don't let my property go so easily."

Max rolls her eyes. "I hope I'm not one of the cheap, disposable ones, but one of your more valuable properties."

"The most valuable one."

Blushing, Max coughs and changes the subject. "Lets get back to work. What do you want to do with Nathan?"

Victoria sighs. "I said it just now – I don't think he can be helped. At least not with us. He…he needs to be put away, Max, so that he doesn't harm himself or others."

"If you're alright with that, Victoria, then that's how we'll proceed." She says. "Anyway, you heard everything. I think we should call Kate and Chloe now."

"If only we could separate one from the other." Victoria says taking out her phone. She blinks in confusion. "Oh, my phone doesn't work in here. I should have figured actually since we're probably under tons of concrete."

"What? Oh…you're right." Max says in surprise. "But you called me while I was in here."

"Hm, let me see."

Max hands her Nathan's phone and Victoria turns it on for a second glancing at the screen.

"I knew it. Nathan's phone has Wi-Fi calling on it. The reason his phone still works is that, apparently, there's Wi-Fi down here and his phone is connected to it." She sighs. "If anymore proof was needed that Nate was really connected with this place. Alright, I'll head up to call them."

Victoria gets up and goes out. Max jumps into action again putting the binders back where they were in preparation for the two's arrival. Kate may be devastated by this, but Chloe…Chloe might lose it when she sees Rachel's binder.

She would be in the right to, but Max needs her cool and calm. They are on the cusp of getting answers to everything and they can't muck it up by losing their heads. Briefly, Max is amazed by just how much progress they really made. How did this all get started?

Right, Nathan tried to shoot three of them in the girls' bathroom…no, even before that. Nathan tried to assault Chloe resulting in her trying to blackmail him. Then the bathroom thing happened and they discovered he may have harmed Kate.

In the process of trying to discover whether he did harm her, they accidentally stumble onto some kind of conspiracy involving Nathan, Sean Prescott, and their teacher Mark Jefferson wherein the three are drugging girls, kidnapping them, then photographing them in an underground studio.

All this because Nathan is sick and tried to get his rocks off in the worst way.

Had he not done it or, worse, decided to kill Chloe to keep her silent, they wouldn't be here. They would have never found out anything. She glances at the numerous binders that have been completed and shivers thinking that it may have gone undiscovered for much, much longer.

Feeling elated and depressed by the thought, she goes up to the barn. Spotting Victoria smoking while leaning against the fence next to her car, Max goes to stand beside her.

"Hey, are you alright?"

"No." The blonde says bluntly. "But I'm glad to know all of this anyway. How are you taking it?"

"I feel good and bad at the same time." She says. "I feel bad that this happened at all, but I also feel good that we discovered it and it will end. It feels so surreal that no one else found out until we come along. Can you believe the luck?"

Victoria snorts. "Luck, my ass. _We_ probably wouldn't have discovered it either if you didn't have the power to retry. It probably would have all ended in the bathroom at Blackwell." She stares ahead blankly. "Nathan would have shot one of us and his father would bail him out. Unless it was me he shot, I…I probably would have jumped to his defense too."

"You know I dislike Price. I didn't think much of you or Kate back then either. That was the kind of person I am. What am I saying? I'm still that kind of person. I…I really didn't mean to say those things."

"It's alright, Victoria, I've forgotten it already."

"No, you didn't. I saw your face after I said those things and I saw what it did to you. I also saw what happened when you saw Price. That's why you ran off and tried to do all this yourself, wasn't it?" She sighs. "I'm sorry. I'll say it a hundred times. I know I have a lot to make up for, but I'm trying."

Max gives her a small smile. "Buddha once said that we're all born anew everyday." Victoria scoffs. "I believe it. Maybe you don't see it, but you're a completely different person from even a few days ago."

She blushes at Max's comment. "Hipster."

They stood together in companionable silence only changing their position when they hear the arrival of another vehicle. Chloe's truck comes up parking behind Victoria's car. Kate jumps out first and rushes to Max grabbing her hands surprising her. Considering she's still in Nathan's body right now, she thought Kate wouldn't want to go anywhere near her nonetheless touch her.

"Max! Are you alright? Why did you come here? How long have you been here?"

She laughs. "I'm happy to see you too, Kate. I'll explain everything in time."

Chloe steps out of the truck wide eyed. She slowly trudges up to the group staring at Max all the while looking her up and down over and over again.

"M-Max? My God, they weren't fucking with me. You…you're…"

"In Nathan's body." Max nods. "I'm sorry, Chloe."

"No, don't be. They explained it to me that you woke up like that. Fuck." Chloe slumps against Victoria's car. "I wanted to scoop you up and hug the life out of you, but in this body, it's just…"

"I understand completely. Don't worry about it."

" _Ahem._ " Victoria gives Chloe a pointed look.

"What?"

"You can't hug her, but don't you have something to say to Max?"

Chloe sighs. "I know, I know. Max, about last night…"

"I know already, Chloe. I've put it all behind me already. I still love you."

"Even then, I _want_ to say it. I'm sorry. I was just so pissed that I could barely hold myself together, so I ended up snapping at you. I was wrong. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

"Stop it. You were right. I was to blame for all-"

"No, you weren't! That's what I mean!" She sighs again. "God, it would have been better if you had gone off with Victor."

"I agree."

" _Victoria._ " Kate elbows the blonde. "Let them talk."

"Chloe…" Max looks as if she was about to hug her but stops remembering she's not in the right condition to. "You are important to me. I'm more than willing to throw everything in the past. What matters to me is that you're here now."

"Thank God." Chloe says, then pause. "This would all be so much better if this was said in your body and your voice. Hearing it from Nathan is just so fucking creepy."

"How do you think I felt?" Victoria mutters, then says more loudly. "Anyway, hold off on that comment. What you'll see here will make you rethink what creepy is."

Chloe looks around. "This is the place where we got into a shootout, isn't it? It's a barn in the middle of nowhere."

Max nods. "It is. Come along, I'll show you around."

She gives Chloe and Kate the same tour she gave Victoria allowing them to look through the Prescott materials too. Once finished, she glances at Victoria who returns the nod, then she leads them down into the bunker.

As soon as they step in, Victoria says, "Kate, hold my hand. Hold it and don't let go."

Kate looks over startled. "Victoria?"

"Please."

The smaller girl hesitates before taking ahold of Victoria's hand. Max knew internally what Victoria is doing and why. She wishes she could do the same for Chloe, but knows she couldn't. Not for the first time that day, she curses this body and her uncontrollable powers.

"Price. I mean, Chloe." Chloe looks at Victoria. "Brace yourself. I mean, seriously. Brace yourself and, for God's sake, don't lose it."

Chloe levels a look at her. "Fuck, this is going to be some serious bullshit, isn't it? For you to act this way…"

"It is, Chloe." Max nods. "Just know that we're on your side and we will help you. No matter what it takes."

Taking a deep breath, Chloe nods, "Alright, I'm as prepared as I can be. Lets do this."

They go through the whole process again. Max starts by explaining what the bunker is and who it is used by. Then she leads them to the binder cabinet and takes out an unknown girl's binder first. Chloe and Kate took it much more badly than Victoria did. They took it as badly as Max did.

Kate is especially worrisome. As soon as she understood what all this meant, she began trembling. Victoria tightens their hand holding.

"That locker – there's a lot of these same binders, aren't there?" Chloe asks in horror. "How many fucking girls did those two assholes do this to?"

"A lot." Max says simply. "There's also something else. Something I think-" She glances at Kate hesitantly. "-you might have suspected already."

She takes out the 'Kate' binder and places it on the table. Chloe's eyes widen and she quickly walks off massaging a headache snarling to herself.

Kate's mouth opens and closes. She looked as if she didn't want to see whatever was in that binder, but simultaneously, already knew what was in it from knowing the purpose of this bunker and seeing the other girl's binder.

"If you don't want to see, Kate, you don't have to." Victoria says.

"N-no, I want…I want to."

She inhales deeply, then opens the binder. She stops on the first photograph and it is as if the photograph and her were looking into each other's eyes. Max had worried that Kate would be overwhelmed, but she begins flipping through the rest of the binder. Tensely, they all waited for her to finish.

When she reached the end and close the binder, Max lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding as did Victoria.

"Kate?" Max calls hesitantly. "Are you alright?"

She looks up at Max with colorless eyes. "This…I…I'll be alright, Max. Just give me some time."

Kate pulls her hand out of Victoria's and walks out the bunker looking anything but alright.

Victoria bites her lips. "I'll follow after her. Make sure everything is alright."

She leaves. Max feels immediate regret for letting Kate see the binder, but knew also that she would have wanted to see it. For the moment, she couldn't see which outcome would have been worse.

Would Kate have been better off if she had wondered all her life instead of knowing what happened?

"Goddamn it." Chloe mutters returning to the desk. "I'm going to kill those two cocksuckers." She looks miserably at Max. "Fuck, I wish you weren't in one's body right now."

"If it keeps you from losing it against him, Chloe, I'm happy to. I need you to stay with me, alright?"

"I'm okay, aren't I? I just can't believe this bullshit."

"It's not over yet, though."

"What do you mean?"

Max hesitates. "There's another binder in there. One labeled 'Rachel'."

Chloe's mouth drops. "Hell no. No fucking way."

"It's true. I'll show-"

"No, I don't fucking want to see it. I already know what's going to be in it." Chloe pauses angrily for a minute. "Change that. I'll see it, but wait until we get back to Blackwell. I'll look at it there so I can prepare myself for what I need to do."

" **No!** " Max exclaims. "Let the police deal with them, Chloe. I want you here with me and enjoying life, not rotting away in prison for killing some scumbag. If you're going to be that way, I'll throw away the Rachel binder."

"No, wait! I'll…I'll look at it now."

Max nods and gets out the Rachel binder. Chloe hesitates a moment before opening it. She then furiously flips through the paging seeming to glare a hole in every photo. She stops on the first one showing Nathan posing underneath Rachel and, in a rage, she tears the photo out and rips it apart.

"Chloe, stop!"

The other girl lets out a loud scream making Max jump back. She then stands in place breathing heavily glaring in hate at the photographing area. She then walks over and begin smashing the equipment.

"Chloe, we need this stuff! It's evidence!"

She didn't listen. Chloe kicks in the glass table near the sofa in the room and picks up one of the tripods smashing it against the ground over and over. Max rushes over trying to stop her. Chloe swings the tripod back intending to smash it again only to accidentally slam it against Max's head. She falls letting out a short shout.

That finally got her to calm down. "Max? I'm sorry!"

She lifts Max up who is dizzy for a moment but is able to shake it off with only a small bruise on the head. Thankfully, Nathan's body is hardier than her real one. In her own body, that hit would have knocked her unconscious.

Grasping Chloe's arms, she says, "I _know_ how you feel, Chloe, but we need this stuff or else Jefferson may get away with it. Just stay with me, okay? Please."

"What the fuck is happening down here?" Victoria rushes in looking alarmed. "I heard shouts all the way up there."

"Nothing, Victoria." Max assures. "It's just…I showed Chloe the Rachel binder."

Victoria looks at the torn photograph on the floor then at the smashed equipment and furniture. She then stares at Chloe.

"Finished your temper tantrum, Price?"

Chloe doesn't take the bait. She just slumps. "Yeah."

"Good. Be cool – we'll get justice."

"I am cool. I'm just…confused." Chloe put her face in her hands. "Fuck, I don't get it. I don't understand. She looked normal in some of those photos. Why did she never tell me?"

"How do you know this happened before her disappearance? Maybe this place is why she disappeared." Victoria comments.

"What? But…" Chloe says looking up in horror. "Kate is alive. Those other girls are too, aren't they?"

"Kate was drugged through the whole thing and remembers nothing. Rachel, like you said, seemed to have woken up at some point. That may have sealed her fate."

Victoria gestures to Max. "You didn't hear it but Max said Nathan may have killed somebody. What if that somebody was Rachel? Even if it wasn't, again, the evidence seem to be pilling up that this is her grave we're standing on."

"Why are you talking like that?" Chloe says tearing up. "Don't you care at all that this happened to her?"

Victoria looks at Chloe in surprise. "Of course I care! I'm just holding it together." Her face turns sullen. "I'm actually kind of surprised you care too."

"Why are you surprised?"

"Did you forget everything I said last night? Rachel is a liar and a manipulator. She didn't love you, me, or anyone else. All she cared about was herself."

"I don't believe that." Chloe shakes her head. "She…she made mistakes, but I think she genuinely did care about me. About you too. She still wanted to be…your friend…even as we were together. She cared, Victoria."

"You're going to tell me she cared even as you talked about her cheating on you?" The blonde laughs mockingly. "Rachel didn't give a fuck. She never did. I thought the same as you in the beginning too, but I got over my battered wife syndrome. You will too in time."

"I don't want to get over her." Chloe says unhappily. "I just want to find her. I don't even care if all I find is a body. I just want to find her."

"And how the fuck are we supposed to do that? All we have are photos and none of them reveal anything. Max, did you find anything?"

"I saw documents connecting Nathan and Sean Prescott to this place, but nothing about Rachel."

"Of course." Victoria says blandly. "There are only three people who might know where she is – Sean Prescott, Nathan Prescott, and Mark Jefferson. Nathan is, as you can see, not possible right now, so that leaves Sean Prescott and Mark Jefferson."

Chloe says emotionlessly, "I'm guessing you're going to tell me why that's impossible."

"You're damn right I will. To start, Sean Prescott is usually not even in fucking Oregon. Often not even in the west coast. You want to fly around the country trying to find him? Even if you do manage to walk up to him, though, I told you before that he's the type that gets up to all kinds of shit. He'll know what to say and how to respond. You'll get nothing."

"And Mark Jefferson?"

"Look at those binders." Victoria points. "There's a lot of them. Mark- Christ, I can't even use his name without feeling sick anymore. Jefferson, I mean, is obviously a pro at this. If he is associated with Sean Prescott, he also might have been coached on what to do if things go wrong."

Max adds, "From the way he talked on the phone, he does sound like he knows what to do. I don't think he'll be easy either."

"But we have no other choice!" Chloe insists. "Unless we just want to let them get away with it!"

"They won't get away." Victoria retorts. 'This whole bunker is a one-way ticket to prison for sure. They'll get at least ten years. Likely more if some girls steps in to testify and ensure as many accusations as possible sticks in court. Kate will help with that."

"The problem, though, is that we probably won't find Rachel with the bunker alone." Max says sadly.

"Right." Victoria nods. "There's no way they'll reveal it. Adding a murder charge to everything else is just bad business. They'll hush up about it."

"Then that simply means we have to get them to talk before getting them arrested." Chloe says determinedly.

"Do you have an idea how to?" Victoria asks blandly.

"I…I don't but we _have_ to. We can't just let Rachel's disappearance go unsolved!"

As Victoria and Chloe bicker, an idea slowly forms in Max's mind. Recalling how well her conversation with David went and just how much she can accomplish with prior knowledge, an idea that seem very suited and viable comes to her mind.

There is just one problem.

"Guys, I think I might know how to find out."

They stop. Chloe turns to Max hopefully, "How?"

"There is one person who we can probably get the information out of more easily. Nathan."

Victoria's eyes furrow. "And how are we supposed to do that with you in his body?"

"That's where the problem comes in but it's a problem we can more easily solve. We have to get my body back so that Nathan reappears. Victoria, I need your help here."

She is taken back. "My help? What can I do?"

"That's just it. I need your help trying to find out how I can get my body back. It was why I came to you before. I was hoping you could come up with an idea, any idea, on how to do it."

Victoria bites her lips unsure as both Max and Chloe looks at her hopefully. Truth is that she had been thinking how to do the same thing as soon as she first discovered it happened, but there is simply too little information to go on. All she came up with were guesses and theories.

"I…I have ideas, but they're ridiculous. There's no evidence they'll work at all. What you're asking me is impossible, Max."

"Let me hear those ideas."

Victoria sighs. "The one that stuck out to me as most workable is simply repeating the incident that caused all this to begin with."

Max stares. "You mean…have a disaster dream where I end up dying at the end?"

"Not _that_ exact." She says. "It's impossible to recreate all of it or even most of it, but I was thinking the important part. Going to the lighthouse location and…"

"…and killing myself."

" _Except_ using an item that belongs to you instead of Nathan's." Victoria stops and looks at both Max and Chloe. "Neither of you are refusing to support this idea. Price, you're not saying anything?"

Chloe looks hesitant. "Well, it _is_ a possible idea."

"This is why I didn't want to say anything." Victoria says angrily. "I thought you two might actually entertain it."

"Why is it not good?" Max asks.

"It's a theory and one I pulled out of my ass. I have no idea if it works or if I'm even going in the right direction. For all I know, the Nathan's gun thing might just be a coincidence."

"But it's all we have so it's worth trying."

"No, it's not because there are a lot of risks involved. To start, how do we know your powers work in this body? Will you still retry if you die? How do we know it doesn't only work in your original body and this, this ridiculous setup is supposed to be deactivated some other way other than death?"

Victoria takes a breath and continues, "How do we know this whole thing is not a 24-hour setup and that we have to wait for it to be over? Trying to force it might be…permanently fatal."

She was right. Max knew she was right, but they took the risk before too. There's no guarantee of it working out but they don't have that luxury. They only got as far as they did because they were willing to take risks and if they are to continue making progress, they must continue doing so.

Furthermore, a problem that has become a growing concern is slowly making itself known.

"It's a risk, I know, but we have to try, Victoria. We can't wait and pray. What if the method works but I do not return in time? We'll end up losing a whole day. Maybe more."

The blonde rolls her eyes. "So we lose a day or two. What's the big deal? All of this has happened for months, probably years. What's the difference if we lose a day or two?"

"The thing is that I'm not sure we have a day or two." Chloe and Victoria stare at her questioningly. "I think…something terrible is going to happen."

"What are you talking about?" Victoria asks.

"My dream. Remember the disaster in Arcadia Bay before I reached the lighthouse?"

"Yes…"

"Remember how I said I had two before?"

"Go on."

"I didn't say that the two I had before weren't nearly as bad. It's been increasing in intensity. Each dream has been worse than the last. Also, each time I've had it, something weird happened. After the first dream, I got my powers."

"And the third did this." Chloe connects the line. "But you had three total, right? The second didn't do anything."

Victoria looks thoughtful. She asks slowly, "Your second dream. By chance, was it the night when it…started snowing?"

Max smiles sadly. "You got it. That's when it happened."

"No way." Chloe says wide eyed. "What does all of this mean? You say you're not sure we have a day or two. Are you saying it's some kind of, like, future prediction? Of some disaster destroying everything?"

"I…I think it might be."

"Even if it was true, which we don't know it is, but say it is true." Victoria persists. " _How_ do you know it is coming within the next two days?"

"Not…not two, but probably tomorrow." Max says to the blonde's surprise. "It's something from my first dream. I had dismissed at the time, so I didn't think much of what I saw, but I now remember something important. One of the scenes in the first dream involved me going to Jefferson's class. There were messages on the walls, but the blackboard had a special message."

"It said something like 'Congratulations to Victoria Chase! Enjoy your trip to San Francisco'.'

"I…don't get it." Chloe says.

"The Everyday Heroes contest." Victoria says in realization. "The winner is announced tonight. So a message congratulating me would probably come the next day. Friday."

Chloe's eyes widen. "Holy shit. Tomorrow?"

"I know it's not much to go on." Max says. "But it's a clue and we can't afford to ignore it."

"But…but this changes everything!" Victoria says. "Why the fuck are we worrying about this bunker and Rachel if there's going to be some massive storm coming tomorrow? A tornado, was it?" Max nods. "If this is really happening, we should be spending time getting the fuck out of Dodge!"

Max takes a breath. She prepares herself to be as persuasive as possible.

"That's why I think we should get me back into my old body as soon as possible. It is the best possible path to take right now."

"How is that?"

"If we can get me back into my old body, I'll wake up at the start of the day again. I will tell you guys everything we found and begin evacuation not just for us but for our friends and families too. Joyce, Taylor, Courtney, Alyssa, Stella, Warren, and so much more. Don't you want that?"

"That's presuming you do go back for a retry. What if you simply switch bodies and the time remains the same?"

"Then we've lost nothing, but gained me my old body back. It's another win."

Victoria persists. "And the risk we talked about? What if this requires time to revert and to force it ends up actually killing you?"

"It would be a good thing."

The blonde reels in surprise and Chloe gazes at her equally shocked.

"M-Max? What are you saying?" Chloe asks quietly.

"Don't mistake me! I'm not suicidal, guys." She quickly reassures them. "What I mean is that…we plan to expose Jefferson and Nathan, right? Well, I'm Nathan right now. Even if I'm willing to spend the rest of my life as Nathan, which I'm **not** , I would be spending it in prison. What kind of life is that?"

"Oh God." Victoria mutters. "You're right. The best path really is to do the switch now."

"Right." Max nods. "So help me do this, Victoria, Chloe. Please."

"I was ready to help you from the start, Max." Chloe whispers. She turns to Victoria. "You?"

The blonde remained apprehensive, but she relents. "I can't deny that you're right, so yeah, I'll help. Let gets started."

"What do I have to do?"

"Like I said, lets try to imitate the dream part as much as possible. I wish I could think of a better idea, but with nothing else to go on, that's the best guess I have."

Chloe says, "So…that means we have to go to the lighthouse?"

"Before that, we have a problem to get through first. If the trigger for this change is Nathan's gun, I would think that to reverse it means dying by something that belongs to Max. What exactly does Max have that can do that?"

She thought of that already.

"Victoria." Max calls. "Do you still have that gun?"

The blonde stares at her a moment then nods. Victoria reaches into her purse and pulls out the handgun she took from Nathan. Chloe stares at it in surprise.

"What the hell? You have a pistol?"

Max nods. "We took it from Nathan. Give it to me. Then it would be my item, right?"

Chloe rubs her chin. "Does it really work that way?"

"I…don't think so." Victoria says thoughtfully. "If it was that simple, then wouldn't she be in my body? After all, I've been holding Nathan's gun for days now and Max learned from a retry that he already got a new one. By now, it should have been 'mine', right?"

"Shit, you're right. Fuck."

"I have no damn clue what is considered a 'belonging' to someone and not another. Is there a checklist?" Victoria shrugs helplessly. "Maybe it involves intention? It must be. Nathan got the gun intending to use it to scare or even shoot somebody. Perhaps that's what made it his, right? Otherwise, the gun would belong to the gun store or manufacturer."

"Doesn't that make things worse? What weapon does Max have a use or 'intention' for?"

"I'm just throwing it out there. I have no clue if what I'm saying is right. I don't even know if we're even in the right ballpark."

"Guys." Max calls stopping their speculating. "I have another idea. How about that GHB you bought for me?"

Victoria stops thinking it over. "That…might work."

"It's another 'best chance' thing, I think. It was bought for me and I've been the only to use it. If this line of thinking we're on has any merit, this would be the best chance, right?" Here, Max admits sheepishly, "Plus, it also seems like the least scary way of dying."

"So we have to stop by Blackwell first to pick up the drug before heading to the lighthouse?" Chloe asks.

"No need. I have it with me." Victoria says patting her purse.

Chloe gives her a look. "Have you been carrying that pistol and drug everywhere with you? Even classes?"

"We don't have metal detectors or drug dogs."

Chloe grimaces before straightening herself. "Alright, that makes everything, right? Lets do this then."

They nod to each other and head out the bunker. Max closes the vault door on the way out then padlocks the entrance to it. She figures that if things go wrong, it's better to keep things on the down low until she can get her original body back.

They found Kate sitting on the ground outside the barn still looking awful. Max looks at her in concern, but didn't want to be the one to comfort her as she might not appreciate seeing Nathan's face right now. Instead, she nudges Victoria who nods and goes to pick her up.

"Come on, Kate, I'll fill you in on what we talked about while I drive."

She didn't respond causing Max to worry even worse. Victoria escort Kate into the passenger side of her car then gets in afterwards. Chloe walks to her truck and Max almost got in with her until she remembered that she came here in her own truck.

Sighing, she waves Chloe and Victoria to go ahead without her. After they leave, she backs the truck out of the barn so that she could lock it, then she gets back in and drives off after inputting the GPS coordinates for the lighthouse.

She arrived and parks besides the vehicles of her friends, then begins the trek up. Reaching the top, she is relieved to see Kate with much more color in her face. Not quite back to herself, but much better.

Seeing her, Victoria walks up and places a bag of powder into her hand. "Alright, this is the rest of it."

"Will it be enough to, uh, do the job?"

"You only took half a gram of the stuff so far. There's like 15 grams left. Even if Nathan's body is highly tolerant, half of it will probably cause an overdose."

Max nods. "Alright, thanks."

Chloe asks nervously, "So what now? Does Max just take it?"

Victoria shakes her head. "We should try to imitate the important parts as much as possible. Max, did anything else important happen?"

"A lot happened, but most of it are things we can't imitate. A tornado was twisting in the background, you guys were…dead, and then I died."

"You said you killed yourself after seeing our bodies, so you must have felt awful, right? What if the emotion is important?"

Max shakes her head. "I don't think so. See, in all of my dreams, I wasn't able to feel any emotion at all. After I wake up, it hits me like a ton of bricks but during the actual dream, I didn't feel anything. It…it was like I was emotionally dead or something."

Massaging her head, Victoria sighs. "Maybe it really is as easy as you just taking it."

Max bites her lips. "Before I do anything, though, I wanted to ask something. Today was…pretty horrible for all of us, I think. When I go back, I'm going to relay the information, of course, but we're eventually going to have to go back to the barn again. Just to gather the evidence."

"So I wanted to ask: is there anything you guys wanted me to say or do differently?"

Silence. Everyone looks confused and hesitant unable to decide if they wanted something done differently. Chloe is the first to break the silence.

"Yeah, stop me from smashing the place up." She jokes.

That snaps Victoria out of it. She rolls her eyes and turn to Max. "I think you handled the bunker thing pretty well. What's more important, though, is that you do things in the right order. If this whole storm thing is real and we have to treat it like it will happen, then your first priority is evacuation. After you show us the stuff, leave the evidence gathering for later or abandoned it altogether, if need be. Get everyone out."

Then Victoria smiles grimly. "Alright, now that I'm done lecturing, you might have guessed that knowing what to do is the easy part. Trying to convince everyone there's a tornado coming and getting them to leave is the hard part."

Chloe grimly looks down. "Damn right. How the fuck are you supposed to convince an entire town a random ass tornado is coming? Maybe you can lie and make up something else?"

"A city-wide evac isn't like an April Fools' prank, Price." Victoria sighs. "Any lie would work just as badly. They need some kind of authoritative proof, but frankly, if that happened, we probably would have heard it already. At the very least, my friends would have texted me."

"Maybe we can take that as a sigh it's not happening."

"Maybe." Victoria says blandly. "But the news didn't report that snow either. We're fucked."

"I'll try anyway." Max declares. "Even if it seems hopeless, I'll try anyway and I'm sure you will all help me. If we can save even a single person, it will be worth it."

"Max…" Chloe smiles at her. "You're something else."

"Well, better to try than not, I suppose." Victoria agrees. "Now then, ready?"

"Hold up. Just one more thing." Max says. "Kate."

Kate, who had remained silent, looks up at Max lethargically. "Yes?"

"Tell me the truth: If I go back, do you want me to hide the binder from you?"

She considered it seriously and, briefly, Max thought she would say yes. However, Kate pulled through and shook her head 'no'.

"Don't. Show me. I'm…taking it badly, I know, but God willing, I'll come out of this stronger. I just…I just need time."

"You will be stronger, Kate." Max agrees. "I trust and believe in you. We, your friends, are also here for you."

She looks at the three of them. Victoria, Chloe, and Kate. She looks at them fondly and smiles outwardly and inwardly. She is so happy to have met all of them. Her life is better for it and more fulfilling.

"Guys, I'm going now. I promise to do my best."

She licks her lips, then literally pours the entire content of the bag into her mouth and swallows it with some struggle. Victoria is staring in horror possibly not expecting Max to take everything all at once.

It is about fifteen minutes before she felt it hit her…and, boy, did it hit her. GHB is something else.

She had died in many ways already. She was shot repeatedly, died in a car crash, and had a tractor fell on her, but she knew when she was suddenly soaked in sweat and started vomiting that this is by far the messiest death she had.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

When Max blearily opens her eyes, she felt a little smothered.

She looks around as the sleep wears off and recognition sets in. She's in…Chloe's room at the Price household. This means that the method they used worked, thank goodness.

Some strands of blue hair pecks at her cheek and that's when she noticed why she felt smothered. There are arms around her waist and a body is pressed against her back. She also feels breathing on her hair. Turning her head, she looks into the sleeping face of Chloe.

A moment of confusion goes through her. Chloe had been sleeping on the bed and she used the sleeping bag, yet they are now together on the floor.

That confusion gives way to realization, though. She had learned in the 'switch' about how Chloe felt. Looking more closely at her face, she sees lines of troubles around her eyes and that her face is not quite as peaceful as a sleeping face should be.

In a fit of compassion, Max loosens herself from her friend's hold and turns to embrace her. "Oh Chloe, you must have felt so bad."

Chloe stirs then the embrace is returned. "Max?"

"Don't worry. I'm here."

"Where else would you be, bonehead?" Chloe says chuckling. As they away, she bites her lips. "Hey, about last night…"

"I know. No need to say anything."

"I want to. I acted like such a bitch even though I asked you to stay." Chloe's voice breaks a bit. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I was just so angry at you- no, not at you, but at my life. Victoria told me all of that bullshit and it's like I saw the same thing again. Rachel, she…she kept things from me for the same reason too. Neither of you trusts me."

"That's **not** true at all, Chloe." Max insists a bit more harshly than intended.

"Isn't it? Why…why did Rachel made love to Victoria and not me? She told me she wanted to wait, but she was fucking lying. Why?" Tears leak out of her eyes. "Victoria said they were having sex all the time. She didn't even realize Rachel and me didn't do it yet."

Max feels a great deal of annoyance with Victoria here. "Stop, Chloe. She wasn't telling the truth."

Chloe sucks in a breath. "Enough of it was true, though. I knew it even back then. Rachel wasn't as attached to me as I was to her. It's because I'm a fuck-up. There's so much wrong with me. Why would she love me? I don't have anything to give to anyone."

"Stop it, Chloe. Stop it now. You have a lot to offer."

"What? What do I have?"

" _You_. I'm not here for fame and fortune. I'm here because of a wonderful woman named Chloe Price. You're such a great person, Chloe, and it confuses me that you can't see this. I don't want someone who isn't a 'fuck-up'. I want you as you are."

"Rachel said that too and she-"

"Forget Rachel!"

That came out forcefully and without thought. It actually stops both Chloe and Max as the latter realized just what she said. Max looks at her friend hesitant unsure if she can adequately explain why something doesn't have to be a lie simply because another person lied about it.

In the end, she chooses a simple explanation.

"I'm not Rachel." Max whispers. "I'm not lying when I say it."

Chloe looks at her sullenly. "I…I'm sorry. I know you're not a liar. I just…I don't know. I'm so confused right now. Maybe this is why I did nothing but looked for Rachel all these months. Everything else confuses me. I just wish I wasn't too stupid to even find her."

"Enough, Chloe." Max says harshly. "I don't want to hear you saying that kind of stuff about yourself anymore. We will eventually find Rachel and then your long search will be finished."

"And then what?" Chloe asks miserably. "What do I do then?"

Max bites her lips unable to respond. As she struggles, though, an idea occurs to her. An audacious, unbelievable idea that has everything inside her telling her to be cautious. She wouldn't be Max, though, if she didn't ignore those warnings and speak from the heart, though.

"Yesterday, Chloe, you asked to stay by my side and that you won't anywhere unless it's with me. Is that still true?"

Chloe stares into her eyes nodding slowly.

"Good. When your search is finished…come to San Francisco with me."

Chloe's eyes widen dramatically and her mouth drops in surprise. Her eyes seem to search Max's own and the latter tries to smile reassuringly. Speechless, Chloe leans into Max nuzzling against her.

"Yeah, Max. I want to come with you. So badly." Chloe whispers.

"That's fine. Come with me. Then stay."

She feels Chloe smiling and the depressive atmosphere that had overtaken the room seem to lift. Once again, the feelings of uncertainty rises through her trying to make her think of what she's saying and the risks that it entails.

Prior to this moment, she hadn't even thought of San Francisco outside of The Everyday Heroes contest. She hadn't even thought of college outside of perhaps going there after Blackwell and, even then, she had figured it would be a college in Seattle. Now she's telling Chloe to move to a completely strange city with her?

The doubts rise dramatically, but Max dismisses all of them. She's taken so many risks already and for so much less. For Chloe's happiness, she's willing to take many more.

Max lifts her friend up and smiles. "Chloe, we have to shower now and also bring the rest of the group back together. You're not going to believe the shit I've just been through."

"What? Another retry?" Chloe looks at her curious. "Damn, sounds serious."

"It is. Look, you shower first, alright? I have to do something so I'll shower second."

Her friend nods. Getting up, she grabs some new clothes, and heads to the shower. As soon as she leaves, Max gets up, takes her school bag, and heads downstairs. Not seeing anyone in the kitchen or living room, she heads into the garage. Thankfully, the person she is looking for is there.

"David?"

He had already turned when she opened the door. He nods at her pleasantly. "Your camera is right there and the files as we agreed."

She eagerly walks over to the tail of the workshop table to retrieve her camera. She takes a selfie as a test and smiles when a photo pops out a moment later. Thank goodness. Max stores the camera into her bag and picks up a folder that the camera was lying on. Inside were several pieces of papers with some being stapled together.

The first one with three pages stapled together is marked 'Nathan Prescott' at the top. She quickly leafs through the rest. As expected, there were files on Frank, but she is also surprised to find entries on Hayden, Taylor, Justin and Zach. Perhaps she shouldn't be surprised at them, but she didn't expect that David was keeping this close of an eye on so many.

Something is terribly off, though. To begin, there is no file on Kate though Max knows for a fact he suspected her. Furthermore, there is no file on Victoria. Considering she's a prominent member of the Vortex Club, is friend with Nathan, and the sheer fact that Max _knows_ she into drugs, it seems completely implausible David has nothing on her while knowing things about all these other people.

In short, he is hiding things from her.

Max didn't feel too frustrated by it. It would have been a bit much to expect him to fully trust her already and, beside, she has the most important files. However, there is one particular file she wants.

"David, this is not all of them." The man looks at her warily. "I know there's a lot more and I'm fine with you keeping them. However, there is one I really want. Give me the file on Rachel Amber."

His mouth drops in surprise. "Rachel Amber? What could she possibly have to do with any of this?"

"You said so yourself. She's a manipulative 'druggie' who spends time with Frank Bowers, right? Whatever file you have on her _must_ be valuable."

"She's also been missing for half a year now." David persists. "There is no way she could possibly be related to whatever it is you suspect Nathan of."

"We don't know that. Besides, I know for a fact that Nathan had a very personal relationship with Rachel Amber, so there might be a small clue that's important." David still hesitates looking suspicious. " _Please_ , David. This is for the safety of the students and there is no possible harm I could do with a missing girl's folder anyway."

He remains hesitant for a moment longer before sighing, "Alright…alright, you win. Just one thing. _Please_ do not let Chloe know about this."

Max blinks. Is that the real reason he was so resistant to giving her the file? It's because he's actually more cowed by Chloe than he lets on? It makes sense, actually. David is ridiculously persistent, but so is Chloe. Furthermore, she has a far more explosive temper which results in…well, plates of food on the wall. It's really no wonder that David is nervous about antagonizing her, especially in regards to Rachel.

Unfortunately, she has no intention of hiding whatever she finds from Chloe. To begin, she's going to be letting Chloe know of far worse things than whatever David could possibly have in his files. Aside from that, she hid too many things from her already and that has already blown up in her face.

"Alright, promise."

He nods. "If you could turn around to give me some privacy?"

She turns and listens attentively. From behind, she hears him walking then stop, then the sound of him picking up the lock. Some clicking from the lock sounds out, then the sound of the cabinet opening.

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees him walk into the car area of the garage. To her surprise, he walks towards the locker with the four number lock. She focuses with all her might on listening to what comes next. Three clicks, one click, three clicks, one click, then she hears metal as David opens the locker.

There is more shuffling, then the sound of a printer copying. David keeps a printer in a locker in the car area of the garage instead of near his laptop?

A moment later, he comes back with a few sheets. He goes back behind her, more shuffling, then she hears the cabinet close.

"Alright, you can turn now." He holds out the sheets to her. "Here is everything I have on Rachel Amber."

"Thank you, David." She places the sheets into the folder he gave her. "I promise to get back to you with information as soon as I get it. May I have your number?"

He nods and takes out his phone. They exchange numbers and Max leave heading back upstairs returning to Chloe's room. She sits on the bed making herself comfortable.

First on the agenda is the cabinet. Three, one, three, one clicks. He sets his lock to zero, so that means the first number is either a 3 or 7, the second is either 1 or 9, and the last two numbers are the same possibilities.

There, guessing the combination should be far easier now. Somehow, she doesn't believe the only thing hiding in that locker is a printer and David is almost certainly still hiding plenty of things from her.

She writes down the numbers in her smartphone, then picks up the information folder. She quickly glances through the files for some of the others who didn't have a direct concern in this whole. As she thought, most of the files weren't meaningful, though David apparently caught Zach messing around on Juliet with another girl.

Once finished with them, Max turns to the juicier files. First, mostly out of curiosity, she decides on reading Rachel's files first.

The first 'Rachel' sheet is a short typewritten note about suspicious Vortex Club activity and, of course, Rachel is the most prominent suspect. If she really is as vibrant as Victoria and Chloe makes her out to be, it's no wonder she may have ultimately drew David's attention too. The note ends saying how he should tail her. Creepy.

Turning to the next sheet, it is a police report filed by David. It details how he apparently reported her for possession and the police confirmed it. Max grimaces. If this is the type of thing David does, it is perhaps no wonder Nathan was ranting about him.

She turns to the next sheet and doubletakes. It is a photo and a real bombshell. It explains much on why David was hesitant on giving it to her.

The photo is of Frank Bowers and Rachel kissing in front of his trailer. David has some notes written beneath the photo saying Rachel met up with Frank 'again' suggesting it happened more than once. The bottom contains little notes questioning whether relationship is real or whether Rachel is using Frank for drugs.

The next sheet is the last and it appears to be another note from David mentioning that Rachel hasn't been seen for a week and he reminds himself to tail Frank. Lower, he updates the note to mention that Rachel hasn't been back at Blackwell for a month and the local PD has gotten involved to investigate her disappearance.

That appeared to be the last of it. Most of the information seems to be common knowledge. She does drugs, is a member of the Vortex Club, and she goes missing. That photo with Frank, though…she only ever heard one other person mention that. Victoria had mentioned it, but it had seemed more like a personal vendetta against her. This photo, though, proves that both were right. Rachel was seeing Frank.

Biting her lips, Max moves to the Nathan file next.

The first sheet is another note from David. He writes about Principal Wells telling him that Nathan is an exemplary student but he is suspicious as he seen Nathan doing 'strange things' at some Vortex Club events.

The next sheet is one wherein David writes a note talking of how Nathan approached him reporting that Rachel Amber is a 'drug mule'. David says he thinks Nathan is pulling a fast one somehow, but he goes along with it believing that this helps him nail Rachel either way.

Max smiles at the next sheet seeing where David's harassment of Nathan began. It is a series of photos on Nathan and some of them are clearly showing him holding less than legal substances. A note near the bottom is a reminder to confront Nathan. The sheet after is literally a series of a police report reference numbers with a one word description ranging from 'drugs', 'harassment', and 'assault'.

There is yet another sheet after which is nothing more than the times and dates of a series of confrontations David has with Nathan. It is a long list comprising of most of the page and several columns in a table David drew by hand. If the list is accurate, it seems David confronted Nathan on a daily basis for two whole weeks. At the bottom, David includes a short note saying Principal Wells ordered him to stop confronting Nathan. He notes his attempt to goad Nathan was only 'partially successful'.

The final sheet is a relatively recent one and it mentions a party on October 4th and a time of 9:45PM. There is a picture of Nathan helping Kate walk out of Blackwell. Max sits up straight as she realizes what this is. A note at the bottom states a belief that Kate took too much drugs and her 'friend' Nathan is assisting her home so that she doesn't get caught. It suggests he wanted to confront them, but couldn't.

That was the last sheet and it seems to only offer one real piece of truly useful information. Nathan's reporting of Rachel might prove useful later, but as of now, Max can't see why he would do it.

She turns to the last information sheets – the 'Frank Bowers' sheet. Frank only has three sheets attached to his name making him the shortest of the three major information files.

The first sheet is merely a series of notes David has listing a series of questions and potential leads on Frank. The second sheet tries to answer all the questions on the first sheet, but many of the answers had question marks besides them. Of what must have been a dozen answers, only three were clear.

One answer writes that Frank definitely sells weed, cocaine, and pills with '(more?)' written beside it. The second is that he clearly logs his sales in some kind of notebook though David writes in angry bold print beside that he witnessed Frank burning the book sometime later. The last answer says Frank is definitely dealing to Blackwell students.

The last sheet was nothing more than two photos. One of Frank relaxing in a chair in the beachfront where he parks his RV and one of him eating at the Two Whales.

In short, very little information. Despite Frank being at the center of drugs in Arcadia Bay, David seems to have surprisingly little on him.

Taking the folder, she places all the sheets back inside with the exception of Rachel then she sits silently waiting looking up only when the door opens and Chloe walks in.

"Alright, your turn. Hope you didn't wait long."

"Chloe, come sit by me?" Max asks patting the spot beside her on the bed.

She receives a curious look as Chloe comes over plopping herself down. "What's up? I thought we were in a hurry?"

"We are, but…this is important. You need to see this." Max hesitates. "Before I show you, though, you have to promise me that you won't freak out. I know it'll hurt but I'm here for you and I need to know you won't lose it."

Chloe groans. "If you're saying this, then whatever it is is going to be torture." She sighs. "Alright, Max, I promise. Now bring the pain."

Max hesitates again but hands over the sheet. Chloe takes it slowly and her eyes run over the first sheet. She snorts and rolls her eyes no doubt knowing of Rachel's 'suspicious' activities already. The next sheet, the police report, makes Chloe scowl hard.

"That asshole. I didn't know he called the cops on Rachel." She sighs. "Figures."

Chloe moves to go to the next sheet and Max braces herself. When Chloe freezes and tense up on seeing the photo of Rachel and Frank, Max prepares to jump in and do whatever is necessary.

Except it turns out nothing happened.

She stared at the photo for a moment, sighs sadly, then flips to the next sheet. Max blinks in disbelief wondering that Chloe took it so well, though she is glad she did. On the last sheet, Chloe stares for a moment then hands the sheets back to Max. She takes it and places it back in the folder with the others.

Chloe sighs again. "That was harsh, but not surprising. I already knew David was a creepy asshole who spies and rats on everybody."

Max swallows. "And…the photo?"

There is a long moment of silence. "I already suspected."

"What? You…did? But that night we all had dinner…"

"I was in denial." Chloe falls back onto the bed looking up at the ceiling. "That's why I got so pissed off. I suspected for a long time but I was in denial. When David shoved it in my face, I lost it because I didn't want to know."

She continues, "When Victoria revealed everything last night, though, my suspicions came back and…well, how the hell could I keep going on denying?"

Max bites her lips. "Are you angry? At Rachel?"

"Hell yes. When I find her- if I find her, the first thing I'm going to do is punch her in the teeth so hard she'll be drinking blood. The second thing I'm going to do is hug her. The third thing? Well, I'll either punch her again or introduce her to you."

"But enough of this." Chloe says sitting back up. "It's time for your shower, hippie. You're not going to skip the bath and use patchouli oil. I just hope whatever you're planning to tell us isn't much worse than this."

Max smiles. "It…might be a little worse."

Blackwell is much like the rest of Arcadia Bay. It does not do early mornings and when sleeping is no longer an option, it rises up lethargically and slowly. The effect of the town on Blackwell then transfer to its student body.

For this reason, Victoria was very upset when some cretin decides to knock on her door and she wakes up nearly an hour before her alarm. She throws off her blanket and stomps to the door opening it ready to chew out whoever's there.

She stops upon seeing them, though. "Max? Kate? Price?"

After the events of yesterday which still has her seething, she did not expect to see Max until maybe their first class together or even later. Kate seems as groggy and confused as her so they must have just woken her too.

"What the hell is going on?"

"We need you to come with us, Victoria." Max says. "There's something very important you have to see."

Victoria stares at her, then at Chloe. There is something vaguely different about the two of them, though she can't put a finger on it. There's a kind of energy they're giving off. Furthermore, she had expected Chloe to be much more upset in her presence but instead she seems to be holding it together rather well.

It pisses her off.

"No, I don't think so. I told you yesterday that this partnership is over, so you-"

"Victoria, _please_. This is extremely important – _life changing_. This is going to change everything and I need you and Kate to be there with Chloe and me."

"What could possibly be so important? You discovered some new bit of information about Nathan? Sean Prescott? Whatever it is, I don't care. You don't need me so you can look into this yourself. I've had it with this whole business."

Max swallows. "What if I tell you that I know what happened to Rachel Amber?"

Victoria reels in shock. She quickly looks at both Kate and Chloe for confirmation of what she is saying but both seem equally surprised. This means Max must have not told them either.

"…did you retry?"

"Yes. Sort of. It's complicated, but I'll explain it once we get to where we're going."

"I…" Victoria bites her lips still unsure. "I admit I am curious, but this is more important to Price, isn't it? I still don't see why I should come."

"Rachel is only a small part of what this whole deal about. This whole thing is so much bigger. It literally involves all of us plus the Prescott family, Mark Jefferson, and so many more."

"What…what the hell did you find?"

"Come with me. Trust me on this, Victoria."

It still takes a moment, but she acquiesces and goes to get ready. Ten or fifteen minutes later, she is in her car with Kate following behind Chloe's truck with Max pointing out the directions.

The road becomes smaller, turns to dirt, and, even before they get there, Victoria had an inkling of where they were going. The barn Max had talked about before. The description of the path she's seeing matches up too well.

Sure enough, they eventually come to a barn.

She leads them inside through an opening in the side then stops in the middle of the barn and turns to them looking very serious.

"We made good time coming here. We have a few hours before someone else come, but I want us to be finished as quickly as possible anyway because…well, I'll explain more in a bit. Still, what I'm going to show you is big, so I want to give you all some time to get ready."

She points at various spots. "You can see the Prescott clippings and letters over there. Look through them if you want but also start bracing yourself. I'll wait over there."

Max goes to stand leaning against the wall near one corner of the barn. They look at each other hesitantly, but do as asked. Kate goes to look at the chest where the clippings are held and Victoria and Chloe goes to see the letters.

Victoria glances at Chloe, "Price, was she like this the entire morning?"

"Not the entire thing, but she became like that once she said we should all get together again." Chloe mutters. "It's like she's a whole new person. Fuck, whatever this is must be real serious."

Reading an old Prescott financial letter, Victoria scowls, "If that's true, it certainly isn't because of this shit." She clears her throat glancing at Chloe again. "You two also seem a little different today. Something good happened?"

"What do you think happened?" Chloe grumbles. "Max and I banged all night?"

"I thought possibly. She seem so much more serious and decisive – so sexy. You also seem more docile." Victoria says slyly. "I thought maybe you turned her into a woman and she relieved you of your raging libido."

"Nothing like that happened. We…just came to understand each other a little more."

"Understand each other a little more? What do you mean?"

"Nothing. It's none of your damn business anyway."

"Nothing?" She raises an eyebrow before smirking. "So if I tell a friend of mine that Max might be available and-"

"Leave Max out of whatever bullshit you have planned, Victoria." Chloe growls. "And tell your friend to fuck off. She's not on the market anymore."

"Anymore? So something _did_ happened. What?"

"I said none of your damn business."

Victoria smirks at Chloe's irritation slowly getting the idea of what may have happened, though she is curious on the details. She suspects neither Chloe nor Max would be willing to share details, though.

"Well, anyway, I'm finished here." Victoria says.

Her comment seems to be the catalyst to get things going. Seeing her leave, Chloe drops the letters she was looking through and follows along. Kate sees them and also runs over. The three approaches Max who looks at them.

"You are all ready?" They nod. "Alright, just…look, I am here for all of you, alright? If you feel overwhelmed at any point, tell me right away. I'm serious. This goes very hard for you, Kate. If you feel even the slightest bit uncomfortable, promise you'll tell me. Promise me."

Kate looks at her in surprise. "I promise, Max."

"Good. Once you say so, I'll come with you and we'll go outside for air."

"We're not about to see a bunch of corpses, are we?" Chloe jokes nervously.

Max smiles grimly. "Not that badly, but not much better either. Lets go."

Before anyone could edge another word out, Max walks to a spot and begins kicking hay. To their immense surprise, some kind of metal door is revealed. Max stares at it a bit then turns to Victoria.

"Victoria, please give me the handgun." She asks putting out a hand.

The blonde looks at her in surprise. She hesitates a moment, but takes the gun out of her purse and hands it to Max. She takes it and, without missing a beat, turns and fires causing the other girls to recoil in surprise. Max picks up the now broken padlock, throws it on top of the platform, and holsters the gun in her jeans.

She bends down and tries to lift the door, but struggles. Seeing this, the other girls jump in to assist. Upon it opening, Max leads the way down. The rest follow though their incredulity at seeing what they do slows them a bit.

They come to the vault door where Max mutters something to herself in thought then she presses '5 4 2' on the door keypad. It opens.

Chloe's mouth drops open as she walks in wondering what the hell she was seeing. It looks a bit like the inside of David's garage, though much more expensive and sophisticated. There were curtains to the left and she takes a few steps towards it when Max stops her.

"Wait, everyone. I think it's time I explain myself." With everyone's attention on her, she takes a deep breath and begins, "As you can guess, I've been through all of this already…but it wasn't exactly a retry. See, yesterday, after I had gone to sleep, I had woken up as Nathan Prescott."

It took a moment for it to sink in, but when it did, Max saw them all lose color in their face.

Victoria is the first to respond. "You mean you were in his body? You could do that?"

"I didn't know I could. I still don't know exactly how I did, though I have some ideas and I think I can recreate it."

The blonde shivers. "God, what fucking powers." She suddenly looks up in apprehension. "Wait, that's how you found this place? Because you were Nathan?"

"Yes. A little after noon, I got a call from 'MJ' asking me to come to this place. When I got there, Mark Jefferson was waiting for me." Victoria and Kate tenses. "He led me down to this place in order to tell me a few things. It seems this bunker was being used by him and Nathan as a meeting spot to do some very unsavory things."

Kate covers her mouth. "I can't believe it. So it's true. Mr. Jefferson really is in all this?"

Max closes her eyes in pain. "Yes, Kate, and so much more."

Victoria bites her lips. "When you say 'unsavory things', what do you mean?"

Swallow, Max takes another deep breath, "I'll show you. Once again, brace yourself."

She leads them to the computer desk and opens the cabinet behind it. She follows the process she did before and takes out a random girl's binder. She places it down in front of them.

Victoria steps forward. She glances at Max, then opens the binder and freezes. "What the hell is this?"

"This is what Mark Jefferson does with the help of Nathan Prescott." Max says bitterly. "Nathan drugs girls, bring them here for Jefferson to photograph them, then they are returned to wherever without any memory of what happened to them."

Victoria immediately glances at Kate. The latter's face had drained of all color as the implication set in. A slight, but unceasing tremble appears in her shoulders. She thought to perhaps say a word of comfort to her when Max's voice interrupts her.

"Chloe, Kate, remember, just say a word and I'll leave with you."

Surprised at mention of her name, Victoria turns to stare at Chloe who actually seem as frightened as Kate is.

"I'm alright." Chloe insists. "It's just…you said drugged girls were brought here and photographed?"

"Yes."

"Girls from Blackwell?"

"Yes."

"And you also said you knew what happened to Rachel…are you saying…?"

Max merely nods her eyes showing sadness. Chloe seem to deflate a little and Max walks over clutching her hand. They look into each others' eyes and seem to communicate silently.

Victoria turns away returning to the binder. She turns to the last page, looks at it critically, and closes it.

"This is some sick fucking shit." She mutters. "Mark Jefferson did all this?"

"Yes, he outright admitted it in front of me. Alright, I think you guys are a little more prepared for what's next. Victoria, I want to show you this."

She takes out the empty 'Victoria' binder and puts it on the desk. Victoria looks at it, grimaces in disgust, and turns away.

"Fan-fucking-tastic. I was target."

"Not was. Is. I think Jefferson originally wanted me, but he told me that he decided to target you instead. He said-" Max pause hesitating a bit. She softens her tone. "He said that he wanted Nathan to drug you and take you to him."

The silence is deafening. Max is hoping to see Victoria's famous fury come through but her face seem to age and express resignation. It's such a different reaction from the switch one in which Victoria showed a great deal of anger that Max is taken back.

"Do you think Nathan would have done it?"

It is the same question she asked in the switch.

"Jefferson seemed confident he would, but I don't know how Nathan would have reacted." Max answers honestly. "If it helps, Victoria, I think that, if anyone, it would have been you that he would have refused to take."

"Thanks. After everything that I've seen, though, I'm not so sure myself." Victoria says lifelessly. "Is there much more to know? I think I need air."

"Go." Max insists. "If it's too much, go now. I'll fill you in later."

"No, I'm staying. You've been going slowly and incrementally, so I'm guessing this is just the tip of the iceberg. If I can't handle this now, I can't handle the rest."

"Victoria…" Max presses.

"Go on. I can take it."

Max licks her lips. She quietly turns and takes another binder lying in on the table. It is the 'Kate' binder. There is a moment where no one moves. Kate looks between everyone with fearful eyes and, gulping, she steps forward to open the binder.

There isn't much reaction initially as she slowly turns the pages. When she reached a page which shows her bounded with duct tape, though, she bursts into tears and steps back. Max moves to comfort her but Kate waves her away. She walks off to the wall, slumps down, and sobs into her hands.

Confused and worried, Max tries to figure where she went wrong. Both Victoria's and Kate's reaction seem much worse. Did she go too fast? Did she explain too poorly? Should she have requested Victoria see everything first again then bring in Kate and Chloe?

"Chloe, maybe it's better if I don't show you the next one."

Her friend looks at her, then glance at the lifeless Victoria and sobbing Kate. She swallows audibly but steels herself.

"I want to see, Max. I want to."

Max nods though she remains uncertain. She takes out the 'Rachel' binder and places it on the table, but she also goes to stand beside Chloe and hold her hand. Mostly to comfort her but also to keep her from destroying the place like before.

It takes a moment before Chloe gets the courage to open it, but she does so. Max watches tensely as Chloe go through the binder. She stops on some, especially the ones showing Rachel fully awake and the ones showing Nathan posed beside her, but eventually continues on. When she reaches the end, she lets out a long sigh as if released from pain.

"Oh God, that was horrible." Chloe mutter. "This Jefferson asshole is a sick fucker. I can't wait until him get thrown in prison."

Max blinks a bit in surprise. She waits a bit longer to see if there's any outburst, but Chloe merely tightens the grip on her hand.

Chloe's reaction…is much better than previously. There is much less anger and more determination to see things through properly. She is reminded of how things went this morning after she showed her the Rachel information sheets.

Once again, Max is annoyed at the variables that cause these changes in the retries. Why can't it be simpler?

"There's something I don't understand." Chloe says. "This means that Rachel's disappearance has something to do with Jefferson and Nathan, right? What did they do to her?"

"We did talked about this in the, er, switch I had with Nathan. We don't know if this place really is the cause of her disappearance, but we discussed that only three people would know for sure: Sean Prescott, Nathan Prescott, and Mark Jefferson."

"Did we decide on anyone?"

Max nods. "Nathan's father and Jefferson were decided to be too hard, but Nathan was a good target. That's when we decided to find a way to switch me back. So that Nathan comes back and we can grill him."

Chloe's mouth tightens. "Good. Then I guess we know what to do now."

"Wait, Chloe, it's not that simple. See, during my switch, while Jefferson was scheming, he said something pretty serious. He called Nathan a murderer."

That finally pulled Victoria out of her sullen quietness. "What? As in he actually killed someone? Who?"

"I couldn't get Jefferson to reveal who. All he said was that he doesn't believe I would forget."

"That could mean anything." Victoria says.

"Right, but the one thing it definitely means is that someone died and Nathan is likely at fault."

The blonde sighs deeply looking more pained than before. "Nathan…there's no way to help him, is there?"

"Are you surprised?" Chloe asks sarcastically.

Max elbows her friend then looks at Victoria sympathetically. "Victoria, I'll say the same thing to you that I said to the other you. I made you a promise and I intend to stick to it. Whatever you want done with Nathan, I'll support you 100%."

"Wha-?" Chloe nearly shouts. "Max, you can't be serious!"

"Chloe, please." The other looks huffs angrily, but quiets down. "Victoria?"

"I…I'm done with him, Max. I don't think helping him is within my power anymore. If you go to the police, just be honest and whatever happens will happen."

Victoria goes quiet again. Max stares at her wishing the blonde would get angry and regain some of her liveliness back.

The response given was so different than the one she received in the switch. It was a response borne of resignation as if she just didn't care anymore and that may just be the case. Max can't have that, though. She needs Victoria to care.

"Are you sure, Victoria? I know you're going through a lot right now and I want to help. If you feel off or need time, then-"

"He's a murderer, Max, and he's involved in some sick kidnapping scheme." Victoria states. "I don't need time to think about this."

Max wanted to argue, but Victoria seem to withdraw into herself more. Biting her lips in frustration, Max decides to deal with this another time. Right now, there's other things they need to get done.

"Alright, I think that's everything. Everyone, lets take some time to just chill. Then we talk about what to do next."

As soon as the words left her mouth, Victoria turns and walks out the bunker not saying a word. Chloe watches her go with a blank look before glancing at Max. She gestures with her eyes towards the still sobbing Kate and Max gets the hint nodding.

"Kate? Sweetheart, don't cry. Here, let me-"

"I'm okay!"

Kate jumps up as soon as Max nears her. The move surprised her so much that Max stops in her tracks. Kate's eyes were still leaking tears and she tries desperately to wipe at her eyes.

"I'm o-okay." She insists even as her voice hitches. "I just n-need some air."

"Kate, please, I-"

"I'll go outside now."

The girl turns and leaves the bunker much like Victoria did. Max watches her go feeling more and more upset.

"Chloe, did I do everything wrong?"

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"They're hit really hard by this. You've seen Victoria and Kate. They look like the walking dead." Max says trying to contain her feelings. "This is way worse than how they reacted in my Nathan switch."

"I don't know, Max." Chloe says signing. "It seems like every time you do one of these retries, you end up telling me about things I did or said…and it sounds like something I would say but I haven't actually done it. I also get the feeling that many more things happened that ended up not…happening."

She runs a hand through her hair. "This whole retry business is tough. Sometimes it helps, especially if you get into a gunfight in the middle of a barn, but, sometimes, it hurts when you're trying to reveal sensitive info like this."

"What do I do?" Max asks her.

"Keep moving forward, I guess. We can't always get the best outcome. Not unless you want to retry several times every day. Instead, lets just try to deal with this the best we can." Chloe takes out her phone and glances at it. "It's still pretty early. I don't think your first class even started yet. Do we chill some more or should we get moving?"

Max thinks for a moment. "Lets go talk to Victoria and Kate first. Then we'll try to get going."

"Alright, do you want me to deal with Kate…or Victoria?"

"Let me handle Victoria." Max gives a small smile. "You take care of Kate?"

"You got it."

They leave the bunker together searching for their two comrades. Above, they spotted Kate sitting against the barn doors outside. Chloe breaks away to saunter cautiously over to her. Max glances around and spots Victoria leaning against her car smoking a cigarette.

Walking over, Max tries carefully, "Hey."

"Hey." The blonde replies blandly.

"Are…you alright?"

"Yes."

Max swallows. "Victoria, I…I won't say I know exactly how you feel, but I think I'm right in saying we've both been through a lot this past few days. I want to think I'm your friend and, if you consider me one, let me lend you a shoulder."

Victoria sighs. "It's…I'm fine, really. This is just so much to take in and even as fucking awesome as I am, even I can't handle this. Before, I was just worried my friend lost his damn mind and may have assaulted one of my classmates."

"Now…" She sighs again. "now I _know_ he assaulted one my classmates plus several others girls and is about to include me on the list. Worse, he's doing this alongside my teacher who I admired and want to be like. As if all this is not enough, I now hear there's a possibility he murdered somebody too. For fuck's sake, what if that somebody is Rachel?"

"It _is_ a lot." Max bites her lips avoiding the mention of Rachel. "But I would not have shown it to you if I had not thought you could handle it. In my switch, you were the _first_ person I showed it to."

The blonde smiles grimly. "Did my alternative self handle it much better?"

"There was a lot of cussing." Max says trying to be lighthearted. "And some throwing of the binders, but yes, you had handled it very well. You even took the effort to ensure Kate handled it well when she arrived too. You held her hand and everything."

"God. From bully to another one of her big sisters. That girl doesn't need anymore."

"But you make such a good big sister. For one thing, unlike me, you're actually bigger than her."

That earned a laugh. "You're right, shortstuff." Victoria throws away the cigarette. "I feel better now. Thanks. Price might need a little more time to work her target, though."

Max looks near the barn where Chloe is trying to cheer up Kate and only earning forced smiles in return…which only serve to make Chloe try even harder. She smiles warmly at the earnest attempt, though, and is happy to see Chloe trying all the same.

"What do you see in her? I just don't get it."

The smiles falls off her face as Max turns to Victoria. The blonde is staring at Chloe her face twisted as if unable to comprehend a puzzle.

"I grudgingly admit that, yes, she is kind of cute in her own… _unique_ way and that, in the darkest part of my soul, I would willingly bang her under the condition that she bathes thoroughly first." Max blushes at this comment. "But otherwise, I can't see her appeal, yet there must be something considering she managed to attract Rachel _and_ you."

"Why are you surprised? You noticed it before even me! You were the one who made me realize this possibility."

"Yes, I saw it and I mentioned it…but I don't _understand_ it. I mean, you're no Dorothea Lange or anything like that, but you can certainly do better than Chloe Price. For the second time, it would make so much more sense to me if you had been with Kate Marsh."

"I don't think Kate is into women, Victoria."

"Then anyone else. You could have gotten together with fucking Hayden and it would at least make sense to me because he's damn charming."

Victoria sighs. "So what is it? The girl has no money to do anything, no talent to take her anywhere, and no prospects in general."

Max bites back any snap replies. The blonde still looks somewhat lifeless, but the way she speaks is pretty much the 'Victoria Chase' trademark and it riles Max to hear it aimed by Chloe, but she keeps her silence hoping Victoria is returning to normal.

"Well?"

Snapping back to attention, Max looks at her. "It's her, of course."

"Her? Her what?"

"Her 'her'. Who she is. Her person." Max licks her lips. "I love Chloe because she is Chloe. Not because of how much money she has or what kind of talents she has. She's…special to me."

Victoria doesn't reply for a minute, then mutters. "I just don't get it."

"Maybe you weren't meant to. Maybe…maybe only I'm supposed to. Maybe I was the one who is meant to understand Chloe."

"Romantic. Fate, destiny, and love. The two of you will be grow old and happy spending your days in Arcadia Bay while whatever innate talent you were lucky enough to be blessed with withers away to nothing."

Max smiles. "Not quite. Chloe is coming with me to San Francisco."

A pause, then a grim smile. "So that's what Price was hiding. She somehow convinced you to drag her ass with you to San Francisco."

"I asked her. She didn't even know I was going." For that matter, Max didn't know she was going either. The things she does on a spur of the moment. "I wanted her to come with me."

"Hm." Victoria responds blandly. "So another thing to this shitshow of a week, I guess. Well, enough moping. I think your girl has finally done something, so I shouldn't hold back our reunited group now."

Max looks back at the other two to see Kate smiling a little more sincerely as Chloe touches her arm. The latter is slowly cheering up the little blonde and she's glancing towards them every now.

Saying something Max couldn't hear, a small laugh finally escapes Kate which elicits a victorious look from Chloe. That is also when Chloe looks over and begin walking towards them after ensuring Kate is following behind her.

"Hey guys. Um, is everything alright?" Chloe asks glancing at Victoria. "Victoria, are you-?"

"Yes, I'm _fine_." Victoria says exasperatedly. "Christ, you two are like my fucking parents, except my actual parents would have laid off by now. Seriously, though, lets get this thing moving. The sooner we get all of this done, the sooner things can go back to normal."

She glances at Max uncertainly reminded that one person in their group isn't so normal anymore. "Well, as normal as can be."

Chloe nods slowly and her attention turns to Max. Likewise, Victoria and Kate turn to her too. She swallows knowing everyone is expecting her to provide the way forward.

"Alright, I know what you're all probably thinking of. That we're to grill Nathan for info next, but that's not exactly it. See, I had something else in mind."

It is a plan that had slowly been forming since the Nathan switch and had been solidifying since. They are now split by two major problems and one of them is extremely time limited.

Due to this issue, Max came to the conclusion that they can't continue going the way they've been going. Thus something drastic needs to be done.

"This is where we should break up."

Seeing as Max had been their strongest advocate for staying together, the announcement comes as a surprise to all as is clearly visible on their face. They remain silent waiting for her to continue, though.

"See, during the Nathan switch, another major problem came up. We had discussed this in my switch too. See, I've been having these dreams. So far, there's only been three but a pattern has came up."

"Each dream is slowly becoming more detailed and more intense. The third one I had? I could swear to all of you it felt like the real thing." Max swallows. "I know by itself that doesn't mean much. However, after every dream, something major happens."

"After the first dream, I think that's when I got my power to retry. I know I can't prove it but I think it's right. Directly after the second dream, we saw snow in Arcadia under impossible conditions. The third dream? I switched with Nathan."

Chloe blinks in confusion. "Max, I'm getting more and more confused, but even if I just take it that your dreams are causing some supernatural events or something, what are you getting at?"

"Every single one of my dreams involves the exact same situation: a massive storm hits Arcadia Bay. A tornado, I think. Nearly everything gets destroyed. Blackwell is torn apart, the town is in rubbles, and...in my third dream, I found your corpses at the lighthouse as that is getting destroyed too."

Max takes a deep breath. "We discussed this in my switch and…and we agreed that the town should be evacuated."

Dead silence. Thoughts can be seen flitting through their eyes and, even if their expression wasn't giving it all away, it is obvious that they're at a loss.

"When is this tornado?" Kate asks.

"My first dream had a message on our photography class' blackboard. A message which could have only been written tomorrow."

"Tomorrow…" Kate repeats losing a bit of breath.

"Evacuate all of Arcadia Bay in a single day." Victoria says. "Please tell me we also had a good idea on how to do that."

Max smiles lightly. "Actually, we were at a loss in the switch too." Her smile drops. "But I do have an idea and, to do it, we need to break up and do different things."

Chloe bites her lips nervously. "What are you thinking?"

"Here's my idea." They give her full attention. "The three of you are to head back into town and do basically everything within your power to get people to either leave town or go into a bomb shelter. As for me, I will finish the last step of our investigation and find out where Rachel Amber is."

Looking anxious and uncertain, Chloe twiddles her hands. Victoria and Kate were less nervous but they also seem very unsure. Seeing this, Max moves to reassure them that this is the best way.

"The plan has to go this way." Max says. "Victoria, you and Kate are the best chance to evacuate Blackwell. Victoria, your connection to the Vortex Club and your overall popularity makes you a noticeable voice. Kate, you can help with the people who wouldn't trust Victoria. If the two of you do it, a significant number of Blackwell kids will probably listen."

"And why do I have to go along with them?" Chloe asks.

"That's for the after part. When you guys are finished with Blackwell, you have to convince the rest of town too. With three people, you guys can cover that much more people. More importantly, two of you have family right here in Arcadia Bay. Kate, Chloe, you both have to convince your family to get out."

"Victoria and me both have our families in Seattle, so we're the only ones who can do the other part, but Victoria is also needed to do the evacuating. That means that I'm the only person we can spare to do it."

Chloe still looks unsure, but didn't know how to argue back. "Victoria, say something."

Victoria looks at her annoyed. "Even if I was against this, which I'm not because it does seem like the best plan, there is still another problem. How exactly are we supposed to convince them?"

"You make it sound easy, Max. I'm influential with some people and Kate with others, so the two of us can convince them together…but _how_? I can get the attention of a lot of people, but what in the hell can I say that would get them to leave Arcadia?"

She continues in frustration. "The truth about a tornado sounds crazy. Any lie intended to get someone to leave town will probably sound equally crazy. Even under the best of conditions, complete evacuation is damn near impossible. Do you remember Hurricane Katrina and how that evacuation went? In New Orleans, they had far more time and far more resources. We're supposed to do all of this with a tiny fraction of the resources and in a _single day_?"

Chloe clenches her teeth. "She's right, Max. I don't see how we're going to do this. I'll be surprised if I can even convince Joyce to leave."

Panic begins to overtake Victoria. "This is crazy. This is fucking crazy. We're not going to save everyone. It's going to be a disaster. Everyone is going to die." She pauses and, surprisingly, seem to completely calm down. "We have to leave."

"Didn't you just say how impossible that was?" Chloe asks in confusion.

"You don't understand. _We_ – meaning the four of us here – have to leave. We'll have to convince our families to leave, but between the four of us, we can probably find a way to do it."

"Wait, what about everyone else?"

"We'll send out a message warning everyone, but that's it. We put the rest of our focus on getting out of here. If anyone heeds our message and get out, that'll be awesome. If not, though, we'll have to forget about them."

The words seem to bring Kate back to life. "Victoria…what about our friends? Our teachers?"

"The same applies to them. If we can convince our families quickly, then we can spare the time to try to get them, but if not, what the hell can we do? All of you must realize how ridiculously hard this is going to be, don't you? Kate, imagine, I don't know, a month ago. If me…well, if Max had came up to you trying to convince you to leave town because of giant tornado no one else heard of is coming tomorrow, how would you react? Would you have listened? Exactly."

She continues. "We have to think of ourselves here. This tornado may actually come sooner than we think. We have to get as much of our families as possible and get out. If we have to leave everyone else- would you _stop_ giving me those eyes, Max? I'm only saying the sensible thing. We're not going to convince everybody, so we have to focus only on ourselves."

There is a long pause wherein no one speaks. Victoria had turned away refusing to meet anyone's eyes. Though no one may have said it, they knew she had a strong point. The task seems virtually impossible.

"I believe…" They all turn to Kate who is talking quietly. "I believe that I was given an opportunity to live and I'm obligated to live righteously. When in such a situation where I have to choose between my life and others, I have to do everything within my power to ensure all lives are protected."

She pales a little. "The truth is a lot harder. I'm scared to bits. My mind is jumbled and I can't focus. I don't want to die." Swallowing, she continues. "But my heart is still going strong. Even though I'm scared, I can't leave without giving it my all to save everyone."

Victoria stares at her, then turns to Max. "And you?"

"I'm staying. I want to finally solve this once and for all. To finish it, I need to find Rachel. I also intend to warn everyone I come across to get out."

Clenching her teeth, Victoria looks at Chloe, "Are you insane too?"

Chloe's face has lost its color. "I don't warn to die either, but if Max is staying, then I'm staying too."

"This is fucking crazy. For God and for a dead girl. This is crazy."

Max shakes her head. "God and Rachel is only part of the equation. There are also our friends, our teachers, our neighbors, the people we pass everyday, and Arcadia Bay. This place is as much my home as Seattle is, Victoria, and it's your home too. Are you going to just leave?"

"So what? I should die along with everyone?"

"I'm not asking you to _die_. I'm asking you to stay and help as much as possible." Max pleads. "I promise I'll try my best to get us all out alive, but I need you to try to get everyone out too."

"I already said I'll stay long enough to convince a few people. Isn't that enough?"

"It's a lot." Max nods sadly. "I've…already come to terms with the real possibility that we won't be able to get everyone, but I don't think we – any of us – can live comfortably with ourselves if we don't give rescue our total shot. I'm fairly confident that the storm won't hit until, at the earliest, late tonight. Try to save everyone until then."

"This is crazy, you know." Victoria repeats but there is also a tone of resignation in her. "This is too damn crazy."

"But you'll stay?" Max clutches Victoria's hand. "You'll stay and help us?"

"…yes."

That last whisper causes relief to surge through the group. Though their chances aren't any better, they feel better knowing they have one more person trying to do as much as possible.

Stepping back, Max looks at the group. "We now know what to do, I think. I'll leave the details to you guys on how you want to go about convincing Arcadia. Meanwhile, I intend to stick to my plan of finding Rachel."

"If for some reason, communications go down and we can't reach each other, continue whatever you're doing, then find shelter when you can't go any further. Once the storm passes, I'll be waiting at wherever rescue crews designate as the main shelter for everyone to go to."

They all nod and break up. Victoria heads to her car and Kate slowly follows along after throwing Max a glance. Chloe looks around hesitantly then turns to head towards her own truck when Max stops her.

"Chloe, hold on." She walks up to her. "Could you go with Victoria and let me use your truck?"

"Max?"

"I need to travel a bit and it'll take too long to use the bus. Please?"

"Of course." She says taking out her keys and handing it to Max. "I just…I wish I could come with you." Chloe pleads. "Could I? Please?"

"No, Chloe. I need you to help Victoria and Kate get people out. This is important to me and I know it's important to you too."

"It is. I…I just want to know I'm still going to see you after this. You're going to be doing something dangerous, aren't you? Not just with the storm, but with how you're going to get all this information."

"I am." Max admits slowly. "But remember, I do have a bit of protection with me."

"We don't know enough about it, though. How do we know your powers are going to continue? This storm…this tornado…it's the culmination of everything you've been dreaming about, isn't it?"

She pauses. "Yeah, it is. You're right. This might change everything. All the same, we have to take the risk. We can't back down now, Chloe."

"Let me come with you. Please, Max."

"Chloe…trust me. I won't leave you."

Max leans in and softly kisses Chloe. When she leans away, Chloe touches her lips blushing.

"Now go. I _will_ see you again, Chloe."

Still unhappy, Chloe nonetheless nods and turns walking towards Victoria's car looking back at Max repeatedly. She speaks a few words to Victoria through the window then gets into the car. As they drove off, Max and Chloe meet eyes one last time.

Max jumps into Chloe's truck and starts it up. Checking the time and seeing that it's still a little before ten, she smiles to herself gratefully that not too much time was lost to this excursion. Inhaling deeply, she now prepares to put the rest of her plan into action.

Some time later, she parks in the driveway of the Price household. This is the beginning. The beginning – and central point – of all her plans so far: Information gathering. She is here to find out what information David may have hidden from her.

Just based on what he did this morning and personal knowledge of how the man is, she knew he must be hiding something very important that she could use when she confronts Nathan.

Using Chloe's keys, she goes through the front door and immediately tries to go in through the garage door to the right. It's locked. She pales knowing Chloe doesn't have the key to this door. Sending a little prayer above, Max walks to the door from the living room and tries the knob. She sighs in relief when it opens. Thank goodness David's security isn't perfect.

She walks through his workshop heading towards the garage. There, she stands in front of lockers blocked by the metal bar with the four digit padlock. She recalls the sounds she heard as David opened the locker: Three, one, three, one clicks. So again, it has to be a 7/3 then a 9/1 and repeat.

Max tries to do the math in her head to see how many possible combination that is and flounders miserably, so decides to just give it a try.

7-7-9-9 fails. So does 7-7-9-1. Then 7-7-1-9. 7-3-9-9.

This continues for a time as Max slowly goes through the motions. Eventually, the padlocks clicks open when she inputted 7-1-7-1. She lets out a relieved sigh that her method worked and opens the locker.

Inside…Max's eyes widen. The first thing she saw inside the locker isn't exactly what she wanted but she can see why David keeps it locked. It's a frightening looking rifle and several boxes of ammo. She throws a glance at the gun cabinet in the workshop but already knows the one in the locker is very different. It's larger and looks more…military-ish.

Well, David is certainly ready for the zombie apocalypse.

Besides the rifle is some expensive looking printer which must be the one that David used to print out the sheets for her before. The top of the printer has numerous stickers advertising the printer's capabilities, including three-in-one, high quality ink, fast PPM, and wireless capability.

On top of the printer is a folder and that last item comprises the entirety of the lockers. Max feels a bit upset. The entirety of the contents in the locker is a rifle, a printer, and a folder? The rifle alone is certainly important enough to keep well locked, but she had really hoped for and expected a lot more.

She picks up the folder. Even without doing so, she easily saw how thin it is meaning it probably doesn't have much. When she opens it, her view is confirmed. There was letters in there, copies of checks, and other near useless things he probably prefers to keep private. In the back of the folder, she encounters a note where David writes 'laptop 11-27-08'.

She was about to ignore it too then something occurs to her. Initially, she thought he had kept a note of when he purchased his laptop for some reason, but who keeps a several years old note for that? Even if David is crazy enough to, wouldn't he rather keep a receipt?

Glancing over her shoulders towards his workshop where she could see parts of the laptop David keeps in his workshop. A hunch occurs to her and, historically speaking, she knows she should listen to her hunches.

Looking at the note again, she memorizes the date and closes the locker. Going into the workshop and turning on the laptop, she enters the date into the password field and…it lets her in.

She has another thing to be thankful for: there is a single folder on the main screen titled 'Reports'. When she opens it, several more folders pop up all with the names of innumerable people. She ignores most of them and heads straight for the folder marked 'Nathan Prescott'.

A wealth of files comes up. Excitedly, she opens the first file which is an image. It pops up and it shows Nathan holding a bag of what appears to be weed.

Max blinks. This photo was actually included in one of the sheets David gives her. She closes it and tries the next few image files. Most were in the sheet, but the ones that weren't were bland, useless photos anyway. The next few files were documents but they were also included and, again, the ones that weren't were dry reiterations of information included in other sheets already.

She sits back in surprise. David may have actually given her as much as he had.

Not willing to give up, Max puts away the Nathan folder and tries the Rachel folder next. Her frustration grows a bit as she encounters the same result.

Sighing, Max wonders what she will do now. She has a few ideas on how to approach Nathan and get him to spill the beans as these last few days has taught her a neat trick – if she knows just enough, people will often fill in other information for her.

That is the basis of her entire plan with Nathan. She will likely never get him to confess about what happened to Rachel Amber under any condition than one where he genuinely believes she is already fully aware of what happened. To make him believe that, she will need to have enough info on hand.

Right now, she knows a large amount about their entire operation already, but a crucial aspect is missing: more knowledge of what exactly occurred during the night Rachel disappeared.

Trying to gather some hope, Max tries the Frank folder. It is mostly the same as before in which David really did seem to have given her everything important. As with the others, there were some extra files, but mostly redundant. Max is about to turn off the laptop in disgust but another image stops her.

It is a photo David took of a burned piece of paper that still has some small bits of info, including what appears to be part of a date and…the name of a dog breed? The title of the image file is 'account book', so this must be some kind of code that Frank uses for his sales. This must be the burned notebook David mentioned in one of the sheets.

An idea occurs to Max. She couldn't find the information she needed here, but this is important. Nathan and Jefferson would need a steady supply of drugs to dose girls, wouldn't they? If Frank keeps track of his sales, is it then possible that she can use those sales dates in order to begin constructing what may have happened with Rachel?

It is a long shot. A very long shot.

She turns off the laptop and leaves. In the truck, she pulls out the Rachel and Nathan folder David gave her. In order to start forming the picture of what had happened, she needs to be sure of when exactly Rachel disappeared. It was on April 22nd, she knows that from all the missing posters, but is that her official date of disappearance or when Chloe last saw her? She needs to be sure.

The Rachel folder seems like the obvious place to start. Rechecking the last sheet, she notes that David mentions no one seeing Rachel for a week. That comment doesn't include a date but the update where he mentions the local PD getting involved after a month has a date of 2013-05-20. How exact is that? Does he really mean she hasn't been seen since April 20th or did he just round up to a month?

She checks the Nathan sheet too but the last mention of Rachel there is dated almost a month before she disappears. It appears she'll have to settle with the area around April 20th to the 22nd.

With this in mind, she starts up the truck and heads in the direction of the beachfront where Frank stays figuring it's time to get the account book…though it'll take a bit of work to think of how she can do it.

To her surprise, she didn't have to go that far. As she was driving through town and passes the Two Whales on the way, she happens to glance over and startle upon seeing Frank's RV. She u-turn back and parks in the Two Whale parking lot. Looking discretely around from inside the truck, she spots Frank eating inside the diner.

She looks at the RV, then at Frank, then back at the RV again. She had originally intended to try to talk Frank is giving her access, but the idea to sneak into the RV while he is busy inside the diner seems obvious, but is it too obvious? Does Frank have the RV locked tight? As a drug dealer who must worry about security, he must, right?

Well, she's not going to know just sitting inside the truck.

Max opens the door quietly, crouches a bit, then quickly scuttles around the RV until her form is hidden from the diner. On the other side, a dog lies quietly besides a beach chair. The door is tantalizingly close but the big dog gives her pause.

Swallowing, she gets on all fours and slowly crawls up to the door keeping an eye on the dog all the while. Her eyes flit to the dog's food bowl taking note of the name 'Pompidou' – a rather feminine sounding name that nearly makes her giggle though she stops herself.

Any thought of giggling stops after she notice the various scars on the dog. Is it some kind of fighting dog?

Shaking off the thoughts, she reaches up and tries the handle. Pulling on it, her mouth drops when it opens. It isn't locked. The local drug dealer doesn't bother to lock his door. Glancing at the dog again, she wonders if maybe he was depending on something else to defend his privacy.

Pulling the door just wide enough for her to fit through, Max crawls inside using her foot afterwards to ensure the door doesn't close too loudly.

The smell is the first thing she notices. Frank's RV smells overwhelmingly of alcohol, cigarettes, and some sort of musky scent she can't put her finger on it. She gags a little, though is able to fight it down.

Getting up to her feet, she looks around and the sight nearly repulses her as much as the smell.

The sink beside the door held disgusting dishes which had old food caked on it. Some flies were hovering near it which may be an unsavory indicator of just how long the dishes have been there. Near the driver seat were various empty beer bottles which weren't that bad really, especially compared to the state of what appears to be his dog's personal space. There were messes of dog food and a noticeably wet blanket there which may possibly be dog urine.

Max isn't exactly the picture of cleanliness herself and her room could certainly use some fixing up itself but this is far too much.

Against the assault on her nose, the naked lesbians poster on his wall and the visible stack of porn mags on the sink countertop didn't even merit attention.

Taking a deep breath (and nearly choking herself from it), she reminds herself of why she is here and moves into action. As she shifts her focus, the computer near the entrance is the first thing that comes to mind and she groans. She only had to do it two times so far and she is already sick of having to search people's computers for the information she wants.

Knowing how long that would take, she decides to search the back of the trailer first. As soon as she walks into what appears to be Frank's bedroom, though, she knew just how hopeless it would really be.

Like the front of the RV, the bedroom is equally messy and cluttered. Cluttered to the extreme. Frank could probably double his living space just by organizing his RV. She makes note of a series of names and marks on the wall which seems to indicate who he sold to and who owes him.

Nervously, she discards that list as an impulse on Frank's part and not his actual method of accounting. Aside from the fact that it didn't include any names she knew bought from him, she wanted to discard it because it would mean how utterly useless it was for her to come here and might mean a dead end to her search.

Without even bothering to try to search the room, Max decides to go back to the computer instead hoping he didn't password lock it.

To her relief, it isn't password locked. Dread did rise in her for a moment when she saw the utter chaos that was his computer with an enormous mass of folders with various titles. Thankfully, however, most of the folders were easily dismissed as they were titled such things as 'dogs', 'website', and other random things. Only two folders caught her attention: 'photos' and 'records'.

'Photos' were mostly dog photos, though there were some photos of more mundane things such as the beach where Frank normally resides, sunsets, Pompidou playing with a seashell. There were also older photos of Rachel and Max couldn't help looking into the face of the girl she is now searching for.

By this point, Max is no longer surprised to see photos of her, but perhaps this is the first time she really looked.

The blonde is looking directly into the camera giving a light smile and Max wonders what, if anything, is underneath that smile. The girl that captured Victoria at one time, Chloe at another, and then got Frank too. What kind of person is she like? Could they have become friends? Would Max and Chloe have reconnected – and reach the point they now have – had Rachel been aliv- here?

She closes the photo, though sits thinking about it a moment longer. Shaking off the feeling remembering she is pressed for time, she goes into the 'records' folder. There were a series of text documents in there titled by the year. Knowing Rachel disappeared this year, Max opens the 2013 document and scrolls down until the document shows the transactions occurred during March, April, and May.

Her mouth tightens when she notices all transactions seem to have coded names, coded drugs, and even the prices seem to be coded. The only thing that wasn't coded were the dates. Worse, the codes were all related to dogs. The names of the people were breeds of dogs, the drugs seem to be some type of dog treats or medicine, and the prices were number of dogs.

Taking out her camera, she takes a shot of the three months of transactions. Then she scrolls back up to the top and looks for something in particularly. Smiling, she finds it. There were some sales two days ago on Wednesday, but one in particular stood out. Frank lists there being'16g of Canine Sedative' for '5 Purebreds'.

Max distinctly remembers them getting about 16g of the GHB for about $500. The numbers match up too well to be a coincidence. She takes a photo of the transactions for August, September, and October and places it inside her bag alongside the last photo.

Picking up her bag, Max gets on all four near the door and slowly opens it. Peeking outside to see that Pompidou is still sleeping, she crawls out. Once around the RV, she gets up and jogs back to the truck, and takes off.

She didn't drive that far before parking again. She just wanted to put some distance between the RV and herself just in case Frank comes back and sees something is off in his trailer.

Taking out the folders and the two photos, she begins the process of trying to create a mental picture of what happened.

From Chloe's missing poster and David's notes, she knows Rachel disappeared around April 20th-22nd so she should start there.

Though she has tried to avoid thinking of it at times, it seems almost certain that Rachel is dead. Aside from what Victoria said that she had essentially become a danger by waking up during the drugging in the bunker, the fact alone that she has not contacted anyone, be seen anywhere, or even used any of her financial accounts suggests death.

How can she start establishing something more concrete, though?

She bites her lips feeling more confused. Deciding it's best to start small, Max decides to start by establishing that Rachel was, in fact, drugged and taken. This means that Nathan must have purchased GHB around the time of the disappearance, right?

A thought passes her mind that perhaps he already had a supply he took from or that he may not have used GHB, but she dismisses both. Victoria already stated that Nathan prefers to use drugs as soon as he gets them rather than sensibly keeping a supply around. Furthermore, Frank appears to be Nathan's main supplier and Frank doesn't seem to keep a large variety meaning GHB was most likely the one used.

Nodding at the sensibility of it, Max begins searching through the April transactions. There was at least some kind of sale every other day – sometimes as often as 4-5 times a day and for a very high amount as some transactions is as high as '12 Purebreds'.

She passes over these until one particular sale catches her eye. On April 21st at 9:22PM, Frank sold someone he named 'Rott' four grams of 'Canine Sedative'. To be more certain, Max takes out the photo showing October's transactions.

Her mouth tightens when she finds what she wanted. On October 4th at 11PM, 'Rott' purchased five grams of GHB and it is the only sale of the stuff for the past two days. That is almost certainly the dosing of Kate. To be more positive, she looked for sales on October 8th.

There. During the evening, 'Rott' appears again and approximately around the time Nathan went in her retry. More importantly, there were two listed transactions for 'Rott' around the same time affirming the fact that Nathan left once then drove back for something else.

This confirms it. 'Rott' is, in fact, Nathan and that means the sale in April is definitely Nathan and it is likely the dosing of Rachel.

So now she has a day for when it happened. April 21st is when Nathan dosed Rachel and must have taken her to the bunker. If he bought the drug at 9:22PM, then perhaps the actual dosing and kidnapping didn't occur until maybe 10-11PM?

Curiously enough, there is a noticeable difference between the Kate and Rachel dosing. It's been almost a week since the Kate dosing and Nathan hasn't purchased anything, except for some weed. However, after the Rachel dosing, the account list shows he had purchased another five grams of GHB on April 22nd then yet another fifteen grams on April 23rd. At that point, the purchasing had abruptly ended and Nathan's codename doesn't show up again until nearly three weeks later.

It takes a moment but the possibility occurs to Max that if he bought more GHB, perhaps he needed to use more? To keep Rachel sedated? But why?

She had already woken up and likely got a good idea of what was going on. No amount of drugging was going to erase that, so why bother to continue sedating her? If the purchase stopped on the 23rd, does that mean that's when she was killed? But again, why? Why then? Why not immediately after she discovered everything?

Kate's dosing only lasted for a few hours, so Rachel probably woke up sooner if she caught them by surprise. If she discovered what was going on and they decided to silence her, why did they wait as long as they did?

Max shakes off the questions. She can't let herself be distracted like this. The important thing is that now she has a general idea of how the dosing happen and how it ultimately led to Rachel's murder. There's only one thing left, though. Where was the body buried?

That seems almost impossible to find out or even speculate about. It could be literally anywhere. If Nathan or Jefferson were cautious, it could be hundreds of miles away. If they were extremely cautious, it could be across the United States. How could she even begin to think where it could be?

She breathes. She has to calm down and think carefully.

To begin, Nathan would probably be the one to bury the body, wouldn't he? Of the two of them, Jefferson doesn't seem like the type to want to get his hands dirty. Now then, in order to hide the body, Nathan would need time, wouldn't he?

She checks Frank's records again. The last purchase of GHB on the 23rd happened at 4:22PM. Checking online, she sees April 23rd was a Tuesday. So he made the last purchase shortly after school? Assuming Rachel died on the 23rd, that means it would have likely happened sometime during the night.

So if Nathan decides to bury her the same day, he would have likely needed at least the next day off.

The doubts came back into her head. What if he decided to keep a corpse around until he was ready to bury? Furthermore, this is Nathan. What if unexplained and random absences are par for him?

Shaking the doubts off again, she picks up David's file on Nathan and looks for anything dated around April.

It seems the time when David and Nathan teamed up to accuse Rachel of being a drug mule happened in late March. Then David's confrontations with Nathan start in mid-April. It lasted two weeks so it falls within the timeframe of Rachel's death. Perfect.

David had a confrontation with Nathan nearly every day the entire week of the drugging. There was one exception – there is no listed confrontation for April 24th. The exception blares itself loudly. After that, the confrontation continues until Nathan contacts Principal Wells.

So assuming the absence was needed for Rachel's burial, then that seems awfully quick. It's unlikely he transported a body very far, buried it, and then came back all within the span of a single day. No, instead, it's more likely that he buried the body nearby, isn't it?

But then…where? Even though she narrowed it down a lot, Arcadia Bay is still a large place with plenty of places to bury a body. There's also no information at all she has that would help point it out. She'll have to go to Nathan for that. Damn.

Max puts away the folders and photos into her bag. This may be as much as she can get information-wise. Perhaps it's time to finally confront Nathan.

She takes out her phone and dials a number.

" _Hey."_

"Victoria? How are things going?"

" _Like bullshit. What else? I posted on every one of my social media pages about getting out of Arcadia and the three of us have been stopping everyone at Blackwell to talk about it. My friends all think I'm nuts and that I've become a doomsday preacher. Basically, nobody is fucking listening."_

"Keep trying. We can't give up."

" _At this point, I rather bully people into leaving as that might actually work, but I'll see what I can do."_ Victoria is silent a moment. _"How are you doing? What are you up to?"_

"I think I have an idea for how Rachel got dosed, killed, and where she might even be buried. I need to grill Nathan now. That's actually why I called you. Did you see him anywhere?"

" _Taylor told me she saw him earlier, but he told her he was going to the Two Whales diner and bailed."_

Two Whales? Was he there when Max snuck into the Frank's RV?

"Alright, that's where I'm going then."

"… _listen, I know you're all gungho about this and think highly of your plans, but be careful, okay? At the very least, having to do this whole morning again might not be so nice."_

"I will. Thanks, Victoria."

She hangs up. Starting the truck, she makes the short drive back to the Two Whales. Checking the time on her cell phone, she grimaces seeing that it is already past noon. There's not much more time to go. Taking a deep breath, she gets out of the truck and heads for the diner.

There were a number of people in the diner, though it isn't crowded. The first to catch her attention is Frank sitting in the back near the window facing the parking lot. She gets a chill knowing how easily Frank could have spotted her.

She turns to the other side and freezes seeing a familiar red jacket and brunette hair. Taking a moment to run through the notes in her head of what she knows and what she plans to say, she steadies herself for the task.

Taking out her phone, she opens an audio recording app and begins recording. Then she calmly walks over and sits across from him.

Nathan looks up in surprise then his expression melts away to annoyance.

"Who are you? What the fuck do you want?"

"I'm Max Caulfield. I'm one of your classmates at Blackwell. I just want to talk."

"About what?"

"About…" She thinks about it. "…some things you've been doing in your spare time."

His look of annoyance turns to a glare. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

Here comes the hardest part and one that requires a lot of tact. Max swallows. "I'm talking about the bunker."

There it is. Nathan freezes and clear shock passes his face. Then he schools his face into blankness. Well, perhaps more accurate to say a face that is only somewhat blanker as his eyes clearly shows a lot of panic. Aside from that, his body is very tense.

"I'm not sure I know what you're talking about. I do not know of any bunker."

If the face and body language alone didn't give it off, the language would have. The way he spoke was quite a difference from before…as if he was acting and saying a practiced line.

"Yes, you do. The bunker in the barn, Nathan."

His eyes become more alarmed. "I still don't know-"

"Enough of that. You shouldn't play games when we're talking about something so serious. We're talking drugging and kidnapping, Nathan. Those are pretty serious crimes, don't you think?"

Nathan looks as if he is trying to decide between continuing the charade or becoming open about it. Max realizes which he decided as soon as he looked around then leaned in.

"How the fuck did you find out?" He whispers harshly. "What do you want? Money?"

Max leans in too. "How I found out doesn't matter. What I want is…yes, money, but also answers."

The blackmailing was decided on a spur of the moment. She figures that if he thinks she's blackmailing him, then perhaps she knows a lot more than she really does.

"Answers? I thought you fucking knew everything. Answers to what?"

She licks her lips. "Rachel Amber was a close friend of mine."

He freezes again. Surprisingly, a look of guilt seems to pass his face. He averts his eyes and his voice becomes smaller.

"What does she have to do with this?"

Seeing vulnerability, Max attacks, "Are we doing this again? I don't have much time, so I'll give you the summary of what happened."

"On April 21st, you and Rachel Amber went to a party. There, you dosed her using GHB you bought from Frank Bowers, and then you took her to the bunker where you, alongside Mark Jefferson, did a lot of fun stuff. Like photos, for instance."

She didn't know if taking photos was the only thing they did or if they were more, so she err on the cautious side to make it seem as if she is only saying one thing she knows.

The next part is dangerous. A lot of speculation on her part, though she is sure she's correct.

"However, a problem came up. She sobered up before she should have, didn't she? As a result, you had to get even more GHB." Here, Max's knowledge dries up considerably so she wraps up the summary. "But then…Rachel died. Did I get everything right so far, Nathan?"

Even as she summarizes the events, she carefully paid attention to his face. The conflict that showed was as clear as day. As she spoke more and more, his eyes become more troubled and he even flinches when she mentioned Rachel died.

"So Nathan, that's what I want answers for. Why did you murder Rachel Amber?"

He starts and hisses harshly, "It wasn't _murder_ , goddamn it. It was an _accident_."

Now Max has to fight to stop surprise from showing on her face. "An accident? How so?"

"I…I…" Nathan struggles to get the words out. "I didn't mean to _kill_ her. She was supposed to be like all the others. I would drug her, we'd get photos and then…and then everything goes back to normal. Of all the girls, Rachel would have been the one I wanted to kill the least. Anyone but her."

'Anyone but her'? What does that mean? And his tone of voice…

With a start, Max realizes with horror that Nathan might have been in love with her. Why the hell did he dosed her then? Was he forced to by Jefferson?

"But then…" Max prods.

"B-but then she _woke_ up. I didn't know she would, but damn it, maybe I should have. Rachel practically eats drugs and her tolerance for it is ridiculous. Every time she parties with us, she needs more than almost everyone else."

"But…but that was other stuff. I didn't think her tolerance even went to that sedative shit Frank gave me. _Fuck_."

His eyes closed as if remembering a very painful memory. His features relax into a resigned look when he opens his eyes again.

"It was fucked. We were fucked. She woke up and saw everything. That meant we couldn't let her go. She began to fight back and we had trouble controlling her. I gave her the rest of the sedative I hadn't used, but she bounced back from that quickly too. So I went to Frank to get more of the shit."

The suspicion Max been harboring since he told her it was an accident slowly turns into acknowledgement of what had happened.

What killed Rachel…it's the same thing that Victoria and Chloe had been so nervous about when she suggested the drug plan. It's the same thing she used in the Nathan switch to kill herself.

"That time, I gave her every ounce of it and it calmed her for maybe half a day, then she woke the fuck back up again. That time, we came back and saw she managed to get her hands in front of her and had bitten through some of the rope we had been using to tie her."

"I had to fight her down again and, fuck, she nearly took several pieces of my head with her teeth, but I eventually got her again. Mark chewed me out and told me to deal with it better. I…I went back to Frank and then I bought more. A shit ton more."

"You…did you use all of it?"

She immediately regretted asking. She is supposed to give off the sense that she is all knowing, but she can't be that if she's asking such things. Nathan merely shook his head 'no', though. Perhaps he's too wrapped up in the story to notice.

"I gave her five grams and it knocked her out for a half a day. I had figured that if I doubled that, she would be knocked out for a whole day, so I gave her only ten instead of the fifteen I bought."

"Two hours later, though, I checked on her and…she wasn't breathing. I panicked and called Mark and he came, but he only said what I already knew. I fucked up." His features twist a bit in anger. "I fucked up bad…and it was actually a good thing."

Max tightens her lips about to shout at him for saying that, but holds it in figuring he'll explain.

"It was a good thing. Mark actually intended to kill her anyway. I had thought we were going to call my dad or something and pay her off to keep quiet. Maybe a million or so, you know? Rachel wanted to go to Cali to be a model or some shit like that. She would have jumped at the money, I just know it."

"But he actually wanted to kill her. Me accidentally overdosing her just saved time. He strolls in, checks her pulse and heart, then just smiles saying she's dead and it's time to get rid of the body. He didn't give a shit at all."

"He…he told me to get rid of the body…and I…" Suddenly, Nathan seems to remember himself and stops. He glances rapidly around the diner as if to check if anyone heard and relaxes when no one is looking at him. He turns back to her. "But yeah, it was a fucking accident, not murder, okay?"

She curses internally. He almost revealed the one thing she genuinely wanted to know but stops himself short. She _has_ to get him to reveal it somehow.

"You may not think so, but would Rachel?" He flinches at the name. "Just think of her dreams. Would she wanted it cut short like that? Being a model in California, being a top student at Blackwell, finding love. She'll never do anything of that now."

"What the fuck do you care? You just want money, don't you?"

He kept quiet, but an idea gradually arises in Max. When she mentioned Rachel's name, he flinched and his face twists a bit. He also flinched randomly when she brought up some of Rachel's desires. She can't seem to get him to talk anymore, but…

…but could she randomly drop names and hopes he flinches at the right time?

"I'm her friend, remember? That's why I wanted answers too. I can't help but think of her and what she would have wanted."

She stalls for time as to think of possible places where a body might be buried. She knows it's close, but where. Maybe somewhere in the forest? It wouldn't be hard to hide a body there, right?

"Every now and then, I reminisce, you know? I would imagine her walking happily in a forest, taking photos. Maybe lying on the ground relaxing."

Her hint actually annoyed Nathan. "That doesn't sound like Rachel to me. The girl was an attention whore. She is always where there's action, where there's a party. She's not a nature loving, hippie freak."

The first thought that comes to mind is that Nathan has a warped idea of how to think about girls he apparently likes. Or maybe he only likes girls he looks down on.

The next thought is to try the ocean. That's a classic place to hide bodies, right?

"Maybe I just know her a little better than you do. She can be a really sensitive person. Did you know she likes swimming in the ocean? Sometimes, she would scare me by diving down and not showing up for a while. I would think she drowned."

He flinches and Max elates a bit. "Yeah, you're right. She did mention swimming in the ocean a few times. I…I thought it was cute too."

Her elation drops as uncertainty takes in. Is that a flinch just from remembering her or a flinch indicating the location of the body? Not knowing but worried that it might be a dead lead, she continues dropping hints.

But her ideas begin to dry. Where else in Arcadia Bay can you hide a body? A…a field?"

"That's not all, though. I sometimes imagine her running through a field full of life and enjoying every moment of it. I bet she could have stayed there forever." No reaction. Maybe the barn? Maybe he buried her right next to the bunker to save time? "As much as she loves nature, I know she would have hated the area around the bunker. Too many bad memories of being drugged. She would have definitely hated staying there."

Nathan flinches and mutters angrily, "Did you have to bring that up again? Fucking bitch."

She ignored the insult and was desperate enough to suggest the Prescott estate next when a horrible idea comes to her. She had thought briefly of her friends depending on her, especially Chloe, when she remembers Chloe's second home – that junkyard she calls American Rust.

A junkyard is a good place to hide bodies, isn't it?

"I…I can't help reminiscing, Nathan." Max says. "When I think of what had happened to Rachel, it's like somebody had thrown her body into a junkyard and now she's trapped there."

A flinch…and then Nathan's face pales considerably. He even closes his eyes in pain. Max stares engrossed in the appearance but recollect herself when he looks at her again.

" _Enough_ , goddamn it. I don't want you talking about this fucking shit anymore." He nearly shouts but stops himself in time. He tries to calm down. "Now how much fucking money do you want to shut up about this?"

There's no doubt about it now. His reaction, his anger afterwards…there is something at the junkyard and Max is willing to bet it's exactly what she wants. She's ready to go now.

Before she does, she will give him what he wants to hear: that she's just blackmailing him. However, she will also add one more thing to the list. One thing that's been running through her mind since the switch.

"I want to two things, actually."

"What? You fucking bitch! You're backstabbing me already?"

"Hey, you should feel lucky I'm not going straight to the police with this, so deal with it!"

He clenches his teeth. "Fine. What do you want?"

"First, I want five million." When he nods in understanding, she continues. "Secondly, I want you and Jefferson to stay the fuck away from Victoria Chase. If I see her go missing and I can't reach her, I will go straight to the police, the FBI, and your entire operation will be in the papers in no time flat."

There's a pregnant pause. Nathan's eyes furrow in clear confusion and his eyes flit back and forth as if he's trying to work out what she's saying.

"What…are you talking about? What's this about Victoria?"

Max is taken back. The idea that he doesn't know what she's talking about hadn't occurred to her. Nathan should have been contacted by Mark already. Yet he's clearly confused about what's she saying.

"You don't know? You really don't know about Victoria?"

"No, damn it. Just say it already."

"Mark Jefferson wants Victoria next. He's planning to have you take her after the announcement of the contest winner tonight."

Nathan pales. "No way…you…how do you know this?"

"I know it." She dismisses his question. "If you go to the bunker now, I bet you will find an empty binder with Victoria's name on it." She doesn't have to bet because she knows it is there. "Again, I want you to stay away from Victoria."

"You don't have to tell me. Victoria is damn near my fucking sister. There's no fucking way I'll let Mark touch her. If that's all you want, you didn't even have to ask. I'll kill him before I let him do anything to her."

Max stares at him in wonder. He really does care for Victoria. As much as she cares for him. She had misjudged him completely there and, really, she's happy she did.

"Good. Then I'll be leaving. I'll keep in contact about my money."

She jogs out of the diner heading straight for the truck. Jumping in, she checks her phone to listen to the recording she made of the entire conversation with Nathan. It had everything.

Nodding in satisfaction, she turns the truck on and rushes out heading as quick as she can towards the junkyard. Upon reaching there, she jumps out and examines the landscape.

That was when it dawned on her that the junkyard is _huge_ and there seems like a lot of potential places to bury a body. She should have grilled Nathan harder about when the body may have been, but it's far too late now. Sighing, Max goes to grab a pair of dirty gloves and a rusted shovel lying about, and gets to work.

Many hours later when the sun is close to setting, she has cursed herself repeatedly. Digging up holes is hard. Digging up holes looking for something you don't know is where is even harder. At one point, she overexerted herself and accidentally passed out. She only realized what happened when she found her mouth full of dirt.

Eventually, she wised up and decided to dig only a foot down instead of two to three feet, and she paces herself so as to not overdo it. All the same, by nearly the end of the day, the junkyard is filled with holes and she doesn't seem to be any closer to finding the body.

"What the hell am I doing?"

Feeling demoralized but knowing she must continue on, she goes to another clear spot and begins digging. About half way down, there is an audible click behind her.

"That's enough, Max."

She freezes. She recognizes the voice. Her body trembles and she has a hard time holding on to the shovel as she turns and looks into the face of Mark Jefferson aiming a pistol at her.

He is smiling casually as if he isn't really concerned about holding a gun towards one of his young student. His eyes flit around the junkyard in amusement at the various holes she has dug and he clicks his tongue disappointedly.

"Oh Max, so impulsive. If only your school enthusiasm could be switched with your detective enthusiasm, you would be an _unparallel_ success." He smiles down at her. "The body is over there." He points towards an area near a sign with a photo of a crab. "You probably could have dug it up just using your bare hands. The fool didn't dig very deep."

"I'll scream."

He smiles condescendingly at her. "Be my guest."

She didn't. She knew as well as he did that there is no one around who would hear.

"No? Too bad. Right then. Be a good girl, Max, and get in the trunk of my car."

Lifting the shovel up defensively, she says, "I'm not going anywhere with you. I know what you do with people who know too much."

"You mean the same thing I could very easily do now?" He laughs lifting the gun a little higher. "And what do you plan to do with that shovel? I have about 50lbs on you, Max. I could probably stop that swing and overpower you pretty easily."

"Stay away from me. I'm warning you. You killed Rachel and you're aiming for Victoria too. I saw everything, Jefferson. I saw the bunker, the binders, and I know everything. I won't let you target me."

His eyes narrow. "So it _was_ you. I thought so. See, I was at the bunker trying to find out who removed the padlock when Nathan suddenly shows up. He becomes unhinged threatening to kill me if I touch Victoria. Another mystery: How did he know about that when I haven't told him yet?"

"Then your name comes up, Max. He says you're blackmailing him, that you know everything, and that you're the one that told him about my intentions with Victoria. That you're pissed about Rachel's death and wants five million, was it?"

He smiles. "You're a better liar than I thought you were, Max, but still not good enough. To begin, I know for a fact you're not friends with Rachel Amber and I have doubts you've even met her. I still have her phone. Your name does not appear anywhere."

"Secondly, you're not the type to blackmail – instead, you're the type to go to the police. So the purpose of what happened with Nathan wasn't blackmail, but to get a recorded confession, isn't it, Max?"

She feels a chill and afterwards gets the feeling she gave herself away to him as he smiles knowingly.

"That idiot boy. I never could teach him much, though I tried my damndest. Ah well, he's dead now, so it doesn't matter."

She starts. "He's dead? You…you killed him?"

"Of course. The jig is up, Max." He loses the smile. "You're also not the type to keep quiet. If you know, chances are there are photographs of the bunker, aren't there? Maybe selfies of you standing in front of the barn? I also bet you told a good number of people."

Swallowing, Max says, "So if you know all of this, you know it's already too late. Doing all of this only makes it worse."

" _Risks_ , Max. That thing I tried to teach you so often without success. To get success, you must take risks. Everything in the bunker will be destroyed and sealed by the end of tomorrow. Nathan has become dangerous, so he must be silenced. You…have also become dangerous and must be silenced."

His smile returns. "No evidence, no recorded confession, no major charges that will stick."

Sweat begins to pour down her face. "If Nathan's father finds out you killed him, he will-"

"He's the one that told me to." At her horrified look, he laughs. "Not all parents are equal, Max. If you went through the bunker, then you should have had an idea of what Nathan's family is like. He didn't stand a chance."

Jefferson continues. "Max, it's getting a bit late. We can talk more in the dark room. I'm actually also really curious as to how you found all this out and in the short time you've been at Blackwell. So again, be a good girl and come with me."

She tightens her grip on the shovel. "I told you that I'm not going anywhere with you. Get-"

He rushes in. Startled, Max swings the shovel haphazardly and only manages to hit his shoulder doing little damage. He tackles her down and she screams as loud as she can even knowing how useless it is.

Despite struggling as hard as possible using her entire body, Jefferson manages to get her under control by flipping her onto her stomach and holding her legs down with his own while shoving her face into the ground. She fights futilely to try to get away or flip him or anything, but he is just so much stronger.

She could feel him against her body and his familiar cologne wafts into her nose. Panic starts to overcome her and she has trouble controlling her emotions.

"Let me go! I can't breathe! Stop! I can't breathe!"

He ignores her cries and straddles her using his entire body to hold her down. Max bursts into tears feeling an intense helplessness come over her.

Jefferson lifts one arm to reach into his pocket. Max quickly pulls her arms loose and grabs a sharp piece of metal nearby. She tries to slash at him but couldn't get the leverage to reach.

"Oh Max, so feisty. We're going to have so much fun in the bunker." He says running a finger along her cheek. "I'll turn you into a star. You'll be the subject of my masterpiece."

Her tears worsen. She says chokingly, "Stop it! Stop touching me!"

She tries to slash at him some more, but still couldn't reach him. From his pocket, he pulls out a syringe and Max's eyes widen upon seeing it.

"What's that? What is it?"

"You should be familiar with it, I think. Gamma hydroxybutyric acid aka GHB – the drug of choice for those who wish to take nubile young girls to a dark bunker in the middle of nowhere."

He inserts the syringe into her neck.

"No! Stop!"

"Oh Max, relax. You won't even know what's happening."

Desperation overcomes her. She thought she feels herself getting more exhausted but is unsure whether it's just the panic and struggle or the drug. Still, she knows how quick this drug can take affect and Jefferson injected it directly into her bloodstream. It will act even quicker. She has to be fast.

Swallowing to gather her courage, Max stabs the sharp metal right into her neck. Before she could register a thought, she runs the metal jaggedly across and then rips it out as hard as she could. The feeling of being held down is suddenly gone.

In her last moments, she looks up at Jefferson who is staring down at her in plain shock. She smiles.

When she opens her eyes again, she gets up in a bit of a panic before recognizing the junkyard. She had expected to wake up in Chloe's room again, but had actually forgotten she had passed out while digging holes here. Good. That saves time.

She gets up and dizziness overtakes her a moment causing her to keel over drying heaving. The memory of Jefferson forcefully holding her down comes back. His body so close to hers and his scent choking her nostrils. She dry heaves again feeling a trembling come over her.

Fighting the sensation down, she breathes to steady herself. Her first thought is to run away, but stops herself. Checking the position of the sun, she knows factually that it will be at least an hour before Jefferson shows up. She still has time.

She pulls out her phone and makes a call.

" _Max?"_

"Victoria, I need Nathan's phone number."

" _What?"_

"Please, Victoria, there's no time. I'm on the verge of finishing all this, but something complicated came up. Please text me Nathan's phone number ASAP, alright?"

" _What…I…yeah, sure, but…"_

"Thanks, Victoria."

She hangs up. She knows it was rude but she simply couldn't spare the time to explain. She doesn't know how much time she has to warn Nathan of what's about to happen to him…assuming it hasn't happened already. She doesn't even know _why_ she wants to help as it seems Jefferson would be doing her a favor, but inside, she just knows it isn't right to let it happen. Not like this.

A text arrives with a phone number. Max dials immediately. Within three rings, it picks up.

" _Yeah, who's this?"_

"It's me, Max Caulfield."

" _What the fuck? It hasn't even been a day yet, give me some fucking time to get the money!"_

"That's not what I'm calling about. Where are you right now?"

There is a pause. _"Nowhere important."_

"Don't give me that. Are you on your way to the barn? How close are you?"

" _What the fuck? Are you psychic?"_

"Answer me. How close are you?"

" _I…I'm about to reach it. I'm driving up the stupid dirt road now."_

" **Stop**. Turn around immediately and leave. Jefferson is going to kill you."

There is another pause. _"Bullshit. This has to be bullshit. There's no way he would. He can't."_

"He can. He'll do it with your dad's permission too. Turn around and leave. If you can't for some reason, then just don't say anything about what we talked about. Keep quiet."

" _What the fuck is going on here? What the hell is happening?"_

She ignores his question. "Jefferson is going to kill me too. I'm going to finish digging up Rachel's body then I'm going to leave too."

" _You're digging up Rachel's body? Why the fuc- you know what? Nevermind. You don't explain shit. Where the hell are you going then? Where the hell am I supposed to go?"_

"It doesn't matter so long as it's either out of town or in a place that can protect you against a storm. Arcadia Bay is going to be hit by a tornado and it's going to tear everything apart."

" _What the fuck…"_

"Do it now, Nathan. Don't waste time." She was about to hang up when she gets an idea. "By the way, I just save your ass twice there. From Jefferson and from the storm. You want to pay off that debt? Warn as many people as you can to get out of town."

"… _that thing Victoria was doing. That was you. My friends texted me this morning saying Victoria lost her mind and I saw on social media that she was saying some crazy shit about evacuation. Holy shit, that was you."_

" **Now** , Nathan. No more time wasting."

She hangs up then and feels far less badly than she did hanging up on Victoria. She checks the position of the sun again, then runs out to the spot near the crab sign and begins digging.

Jefferson was right about how deep the hole is. Hardly five minutes passes before an overwhelmingly horrific smell hits her like a truck making her gag. Heaving a bit off to the side, she gathers herself and continues. Shredded cloth begins to appear. Rotting skin. Bones.

When she succeeded in revealing the entirety of the corpse, she stood there not quite knowing what to do. She wanted to find Rachel's body and she did. Now what?

Basically on impulse, she runs to the truck, takes out her camera and returns. She takes a photo of the corpse making sure to include the area in the photo then buries the body again. Afterwards, she pats the dirt to try to cover up that she dug there, though she hardly knows how successful that will be. She runs to the truck and speeds off.

She didn't really know what to do or where to go now. She doesn't even need to be nervous about being attacked either as Jefferson won't know about her now that she warned Nathan.

The entirety of much of her week has been so full of plans and determined by a course of action that needs to be done. However, everything is finished now, isn't it? She found out what had happened to Kate, she found where Rachel is, and she knows how to get justice for both.

The only thing left is to try to get everyone out of town, but now she encounters the same problem Victoria mentioned earlier. _How_ to do it?

Without even really thinking, Max drives to the lighthouse. There, she walks to the top and sits on the bench resting her head in her hands. There is still something to be done but she is utterly at a loss on how to do it or even where to start.

She thinks about the possibility of contacting the media but who is going to listen to a random teenager about evacuating a town? She wouldn't have in their position.

Sighing, Max clutches her head tighter feeling drained of energy and exhausted. She knows she can't rest yet, but _God_ , she is just so tired.

Taking a deep breath and hardly feeling up to it, she using the web on her phone to look up the contact information of her local news stations. Arcadia Bay has no local TV stations, which isn't surprising. The TV stations are focused in Portland with a smaller focus in the outlying cities of notable populations.

Arcadia Bay isn't in the top ten of most populated Oregon cities. It isn't even in the top twenty. Or the top 50. If she wants a station that cares about Arcadia Bay and a station where she is more likely to get her voice out, she'll have to turn to radio stations.

A quick search later increases her headache. Arcadia has five local FM stations and two other non-local that still gets a strong signal here. There's also two AM stations that gets decent signal here.

She starts with the first station that popped up – a Christian contemporary music station. A few rings in, the call picks up.

" _And with us now is a caller. May I ask who I have the pleasure of speaking with?"_

"H-hello, my name is Max Caulfield. I'm a student at Blackwell."

She almost immediately regrets that. If all of this turns out for nothing, there's a good chance Principal Wells won't be happy with her.

" _At Blackwell? Magnificent school. We're happy to have you with us. So Max, did you call to request a song? Or to wish a family or friend happy birthday?"_

"No, see, I…I want to say something. That is I wanted to give a warning to all the people of Arcadia Bay."

" _A…warning? What kind of warning, Max?"_

"A storm warning. Sometime between now and tomorrow, there is going to be a massive storm. A tornado. It's going to absolutely tear everything apart. I want to warn everyone to get out of Arcadia Bay until the danger passes. At a minimum, stay away until the day after tomorrow."

" _Max, I don't underst-"_

She hangs up. Gulping down the feeling of embarrassment at what she just did, she slumps into the bench. She got the warning out, but who knows how much attention they'll pay to it? Especially when she didn't bother to explain herself?

But how could she? If she told them she had a dream about it, they would laugh at her. It seems better to just give the warning and bail hoping as many as possible would listen.

Taking another deep breath, she continues onto the next radio station. A public radio station. She calls, say her warning, then hangs up. She continues on with the next one, then the next.

Some stations took more than one try to get through, some stations got rough with her thinking she's a lunatic trying to scare people for no reason (she can't blame them), but most went similarly to the first call.

After she called the last stations – an AM station that play oldies – she feels a bit lighter and is able to breathe easier. The exhaustion she's been feeling the entire time seems to hit harder than ever and she decides to lie down closing her eyes to rest.

She didn't know how much time passed when she woke up. It was dark, but it was about twilight when she reached the lighthouse anyway. It wouldn't have been long before it became dark, so she doesn't know if she's been asleep for an hour or three. All she knows is that she's cold.

…and that there's some kind of howling noise.

That thought hits her with surprise. Getting up, Max walks to the aside across from where the bench is set to face towards Arcadia Bay. Her mouth drops seeing the awful clouds and flashes of lightning. There are also bits of vegetation swishing through the air being carried away by the wind.

Max shakes her head in horror. It looks like a storm, but it can't be the storm she thinks, can it?

Taking out her phone and checks the time. It's only about 9PM. Not even near midnight yet. How could the storm be coming already? Was there some clue she missed that indicated this?

She blinks noticing an indicator indicating missed calls and texts. Opening her notification menu, she is stunned to see over 20 missed calls and some three dozen missed texts. How did she sleep through them all?

Checking the texts first, there were the expected messages from Victoria, Chloe, and Kate in increasing levels of panic. There were also messages from Warren and…Courtney? Courtney Wagner? Ignoring that, Max also sees messages from her parents. Has news of the storm even reached Seattle?

Swallowing, Max immediately calls Chloe. The call drops immediately.

Confused, she checks her signal only to see that it is utterly blank. A stark contrast to the full set of bars she had earlier when using the Internet and calling radio stations. Were the communication lines down?

Feeling panic rising, Max quickly runs down the hill and jumps into Chloe's truck. Trying to calm herself, she starts the truck and quickly turns on the radio to the first station she could get a voice from.

" _-that speeds have increased to a dangerous 92MPH now. That is classified as an F1 tornado meaning it will cause a lot of damage. Remember that only 30 minutes ago, it was at a much lower 67MPH – an F0 tornado – and, an hour ago when we first heard of it, it was just 28MPH."_

" _So an hour ago, it was weak enough that it wouldn't even fit into the tornado classification scale. Now, an hour, later, it has reached F1 out of a total of six possible classifications with F1 being the second lowest. This is crazy, folks. Do whatever it takes to keep safe."_

" _We've had no news from local authorities as of now and no reports of what may be going on in terms of emergency services. Other radio stations and TV stations are just getting wind of this and are now broadcasting it themselves. We've might have been late too if it weren't for an earlier caller named Max Caulfield who called to warn us ahead of this, this, this crazy phenomenon that even meteorologists are baffled by."_

" _We'll try to keep you as updated as possible. For now, just continue keeping safe. If you can, get out of Arcadia Bay. If you are unable-"_

She turns off the radio and bites her lips nervously. She needs silence to think. She has no idea just how powerful a 92MPH tornado is. An F1 out of a total of six classes means it's not too bad yet, right?

Even if it does mean that, though, they also said the speed rose massively within just an hour. What if it continues? She doesn't know much about tornadoes, but she doubts a tornado at 150MPH will be pretty. She has to get out of Arcadia Bay _now_.

Putting the truck in gear, she backs out and immediately flies down the road.

Every now and then, she glances at her phone to see the same lack of signal. As she gets further from the lighthouse, the wind seems to be getting stronger. Even inside the car, the howling is beginning to become loud.

She tries turning on the radio again.

" _-but we can't be sure how quick it will be so you can't depend on them, folks. If you're safe wherever you are, stay there! If you're not, find a place to be safe. Even here in the studio, we see objects being tossed around like dolls and the building is actually shuddering underneath my feet."_

" _This building is very well made and was actually designed against storms, folks, but that means nothing – NOTHING – in the face of this. I reported to you all a little ago that the tornado has increased to about 107MPH putting it within range of the F2 tornado class. Right now, it has reached 126MPH. It is well into the F2 range now."_

" _For those who don't know, an F2 tornado causes high damage and even smaller homes can be torn to pieces. Trees will be lifted right out of the ground. Smaller animals can go flying. If you have cats or dogs, hold on to them tight."_

" _So far, I've rece- reports that -lice has managed to evacuate a good part of town. Blackwell Academy has also been said to have been - by authorities, but is currently unknown -tus. For - of you with children -, I know you are worried but - where you are and let the -rities handle it. It will - profit your -ren if you die - - them. Let the police - them to -ty."_

" _Meanwhile, - -yor just -leased - -ment-"_

She turns off the radio. The wind has become extremely loud and she has trouble hearing the radio even inside the truck. Even if she could, her focus is slowly waning as her greater worries begin to take over.

For a few minutes now, she has been feeling the truck sway on its wheels and she's been having trouble driving straight. The trees are now blowing tremendously and some are bent to the point that it looks like they're about to snap. Debris has been flying across the road and some even hit the windows giving her a shock.

Max has no idea which direction the tornado is in and which direction it's heading towards. Either she's heading directly into it or it's getting bigger. Either scenario scares the wits out of her.

In the back of her mind, there is also a nagging reminder that her retry powers might not be so useful this time. She foolishly fell asleep and woke up just as the storm is raging. Even if she retries, she'll wake up at a bad time all the same.

The truck lifts up into the air a bit and drops. The shock that goes through her is so intense that she slams on the brakes and swerve stopping in the middle of the road. She tries to catch her breath only to get another shock with a large rock of some sort slams into the back window of the truck and cracks it. Had it broken through, Max's head would have been ripped off.

Her heart pounding, she tries desperately to think of where to go. Her eyes flit from place to place trying to get some kind of any idea, any idea, on what to do. Suddenly, familiarity lights up inside her. She knows this area. This area is about three miles away from the path leading to the bunker.

The idea of going there repulses her and makes her heart jump a bit, but…it's the only safe place she knows of. There's no way the tornado could reach her there. Swallowing down a nervous alarm signal in her, Max begins driving towards the bunker.

It was only a three mile drive, but it was nerve wracking. As the minutes pass, the truck jumps more and more. Controlling it becomes more difficult. At several points, she nearly veers into a tree because the wind forcefully pushes her off the road. Once, a small tree literally flies right past the front of the truck. Had she been just a little bit further ahead…

At last, she reaches the dirt path leading to the bunker and start driving up it. At the end, she comes to an area that took a beating. The junk car that's been there has been turned over onto its side. The abandoned house a little bit away lost its roof and has a tree planted right in its side.

The barn doesn't look much better. It's missing part of its side and the locked door has broken off of one hinge. She can actually see inside at the debris all around and the bales of hay that's been torn apart. The trap door leading into the bunker is missing. She spots it at the other side of the barn.

Gulping down the wave of fear, Max grabs her school bag and gets out of the car.

Almost immediately, she is hit by a huge blast of wind. For a minute, she literally got lifted off her feet and scrambles to try to get back on the ground. When it lets up the tiniest and she lands back down, she crouches on all four and begins crawling towards the bunker.

She yelps at several instances when she gets hit by small debris. Small as they were, they _hurt_. One tree branch actually flies past and cuts right through her jacket, though it luckily misses her arm.

Managing to reach the stairwell leading to the bunker relatively unharmed, Max throws herself down the stairs landing on her shoulder. Quickly getting up, she runs to the bunker, enters '5 4 2', and lets herself in. She closes the door afterwards.

Breathing heavily, she takes in the silence of the bunker and lets out a relieved sigh. She's safe now. All she had to do is wait the storm out.

Walking inside, she looks around. Everything seems to be the same as when she was last here. Throwing her school bag onto the ground, she sits at the computer and tries to access the Internet. She isn't too surprised to find the connection has been cut off.

So she can't access her phone or the computer. She's basically cut off from all contact and has to wait this thing out alone.

Shivering a bit, Max goes to sit on the couch hugging her knees against herself. She feels exhaustion again and wants to fall asleep but feels that it's a bad idea. If she creates a savepoint here, it may end up being even more disastrous. So she forces herself to remain awake and wait.

She didn't know how much time passed. For all she knew, she may have only been there for a half hour before she started getting restless. The boredom and exhaustion combined made the experience maddening and it feels overly long.

Max wanted to play with her smartphone but she didn't have her phone charger with her. Chances are the bunker is on some sort of emergency power and she can't waste electricity anyway. After all, the power lines were knocked down when she was driving here. She'll need to use her phone as little as possible to ensure it doesn't die on her.

Some unaccountable time later, Max is alerted to the sound of the bunker door handle turning. She scrambles onto the floor next to the couch intending to hide from the view from whoever is coming.

The opening of the bunker door can be heard and, afterwards, its closing. Slow, dragging footsteps comes to the main room.

"Oh, _motherfuck_ , my fucking goddamn fucking-" There's a sound of a body falling on the floor. "Oh fuck! Goddamn it! Motherfucking-"

The cursing continues on but Max tunes it out as she recognizes the voice. Slowly peeking around the couch, she confirms her thoughts when she sees Nathan Prescott. He is lying on the floor clutching onto a bloody leg. The rest of him is in much better shape, though he also grabs now and then at his ribs.

She hesitates at revealing herself, but seeing how injured he is, a decision is easier to come to. Max slowly gets up from behind the couch.

"Why are you here?"

Nathan starts. "What the fuck?" His surprise turns to an angry scowl. "Oh goddamn it, not you. Why the fuck do you think I'm here? Because there's a fucking tornado out there."

"Which I warned you about."

"Yeah, well, how the fuck was I supposed to take that? I kept watching the skies waiting to see if you were right again or just fucking crazy. By the time I realized shit was really happening, I rushed back to grab some stuff then tried to get the fuck out, but I couldn't get away. This was the first place I thought to go."

This _idiot_. She made herself seem damn near omniscient to him and he _still_ didn't listen to her.

A shiver goes through her as it occurs to her what a hell of a job her friends must have had. Were they able to convince any at Blackwell? What of their families? Were any of them able to convince utterly _anyone_?

"What about others? Our classmates at Blackwell? The townspeople?"

"Nobody was fucking leaving, alright? When I got to Blackwell, most people weren't even paying attention to weather. When I was driving through town, people were just going on like normal."

"Oh God…" Max walks over and leans against a wall. "How many people must have died already? This is awful. God, this is terrible."

"Hey, how about fucking helping me here?"

She scowls heavily at him. "I should just leave you there. I already did more than you deserved considering all the things you did."

"I'm paying you the fucking money, ain't I?" He growls. "Besides, I already fucking told you what happened to Rachel was an _accident_. I didn't _want_ to hurt her. In the least."

"You jackass! You didn't want to kill her, but you kidnapped her for some sort of twisted sexual fantasy photoshoot! You think she was happy with that?"

"I _know_ she wasn't, goddamn it, but I also had no choice there! Mark wanted her. I _had_ to do it."

She glares darkly. "Because of your father?"

He stares emotionlessly at her. "You know that too? Jesus fucking Christ." He clears his throat. "Anyway, don't fucking blame me for Rachel. I didn't mind the other girls, but her? No."

"Some of those other girls were my friends too!" Max yells. "You drugged Kate!"

Nathan pauses and his face scrunch up. "Oh _fuck_ , that's right. I've seen you hanging around with her sometimes. I forgot that."

She ignores him. "Even if I weren't friends with them, you think I wanted them to suffer like that? It could have happened to _me_ too." She recalls too clearly the struggle with Jefferson and his intention to take her here. "Not could – it almost did. Mark actually wanted me before Victoria. He pressed hard to get me to enter that stupid contest of his and this is why."

There's a look on Nathan's face. "You knew this, didn't you? You _fucking_ knew."

He swallows nodding. "Yeah, Mark mentioned you a lot of times. Always talking about your face and body proportions and shit. Kept going on about your innocence and purity. He had a full hard-on for you. That's why I didn't believe you when you said he's targeting Victoria. Because I thought he was targeting you."

Her shoulders trembling a bit with anger, Max walks over to the binder cabinet, takes out the empty 'Victoria' binder, and throws it at Nathan's feet.

"See that? When I just wouldn't enter the contest, Jefferson gave up and decided to go with Victoria. I don't know why but winning the contest is crucial to him getting either me or Victoria."

"Drinks." Nathan mutters. "He puts that sedative shit in the drinks. He got some of the girls I couldn't get to the same way." He continues emotionlessly. "You think he sends me after every girl? Some I just can't get to, especially if they're not the partying type. Those he gets himself."

"How does he do it without exposing himself? Were they killed too?"

"No. You think we killed everyone? He would dose them just as they're leaving. They would get knocked out some time later, I pick them up, and then…well, you know. None of them ever found out anything." He stares at her. "Huh, so you don't know everything."

She was already aware that she was asking too many questions, but didn't care. She already found out everything she needed to know. No point in keeping it hidden now.

"Only the things that are most important to me. You are a horrible person, Nathan."

"Why the fuck do you care so much? You're just doing this for the money, aren't you?" He glares at her, but slowly, a light seem to dawn in his face. "Wait, something is off about this."

"Mark always talked about your innocence and that kind of shit. I've also seen the way you act sometimes. He had me watched you." Nathan said it so casually but it caused a shiver down Max's spine to think she had been watched that way. "Blackmail doesn't seem right. You…"

Realization comes to him. "You didn't really want the money. You're going to report everything."

She goes on guard. "Yes, I am. I can't let you or Jefferson get away with this."

Nathan groans slumping onto the floor. "Fuck me. This day just can't get any fucking worse." He sighs and then growls to her, "Well, you can't report me now, at least. So how about fucking helping me onto the couch now?"

She scowls again, but acquiesces walking over to him, flinging his arm over her shoulders, and lifting him up. She helps him limp over to the couch and lands him there none too gently causing him to cuss at her.

"Goddamn it. I can't fucking believe I made it all the way here only to get hit by a fucking flying tree right before coming in here."

"That's what happened to you?"

"Yeah. The tree knocked me off my fucking feet and one of its branches stabbed me in my fucking thigh."

She pauses and the same worries that's been plaguing her comes back. "Hey, do you know what happened to my friends? Victoria, Kate, and Chloe."

He pauses. " _Victoria_ is _your_ friend? This is the first I've heard of this shit. I knew about Kate, but Chloe…holy shit, are you talking about Chloe Price? The Chloe that I, uh…"

"That you took photos of and attempted to rape?" Every reminder she openly voices of Nathan's horrid deeds makes her hate him more. "Yes, that Chloe."

"Oh fucking Christ." He mutters. "No, I have no idea what happened to them. When I got to Blackwell, I didn't see any of them."

She bites her lips. That gives her some hope that they bailed before too late and managed to get out, but the uncertainty gnaws at her. She glances towards the bunker door thinking of going out but immediately dismisses the thought knowing it would be suicide.

A glance at Nathan's leg gives her a clue on what may happen if she tries to go out. She slumps down sitting against the wall.

"How long is this fucking storm going to keep going?" Nathan murmurs to himself.

Max shakes her head in answer though she knows he probably didn't see. She assumes it's only going to last one day, though she doesn't know for sure. She doesn't even know if it's officially Friday yet or if it's still Thursday night. The boredom and lack of electronics has basically blinded her to the passage of time.

The two of them fall into silence. Max's vision blurs a bit and she almost nods off before catching herself and standing back up to ensure movement keeps her awake. A feeling of dread passes through her wondering how long she can keep this up.

The sound of snoring alerts her to the other occupant of the room having no such problems going to sleep and she almost envies him that he doesn't need to take any 'retry' powers into consideration. Then she feels lucky that someone like Nathan doesn't have access to such powers.

She goes to the cabinet near the printer, leafs through the books in there, and takes out a reference book on photography. Keeping on her feet, she begins to read through the book.

Some time later when Max feels nearly dead on her feet and the book hangs limply from her hands, she suddenly hears beeping noise coming from the direction of the bunker door. Surprised, Max drops the book she's been reading and scrambles once more to find a hiding place.

With the couch taken by the still sleeping Nathan, she desperately tries to find another hiding place quickly falling into panic when she realizes there isn't any. Most of the room is bare and plainly visible. The bunker door handle slowly turns.

She almost thought that she may have no choice but to face whoever's coming until the memory of the first time she came to the barn came back to her. Back then, she was able to hide simply by blocking her body with a series of hay bales underneath the platform. Can she do that here?

Her eyes fly around the room finally landing on a large trunk near the cabinet containing food. She runs over and pulls it outwards a bit to allow space for her to hide behind. Then she quickly grabs one of the smaller trunks from elsewhere and carries it over. She places herself behind the trunk, then pulls the smaller trunk against the side. Now her body is almost fully covered.

The major difference being that the barn then was dark and hard to see. The bunker, however, is very well lit. All she can do is hope.

The bunker door opens and there is a masculine groaning and the sound of someone stumbling. Footsteps come into the main room.

"Nathan." A voice says coldly. Max freezes recognizing it as that of Mark Jefferson. "Nathan! Wake up."

Sleepily grumbling, Nathan's still tired voice calls out, "Wha- what the…who the fuck called me?" A pause, then he sounded incredulous, "You're still alive?"

"Watch it, boy." Jefferson laughs mockingly. "I see you didn't escape unscathed either. You're even worse off than me."

"A flying tree hit me and stabbed me too. What the hell happened to you? Why is there so much blood all over you? Is all that just from the gash in your head?"

"Be quiet." A sighing and shuffling noise. "I need a moment to think. What a hell of day this is. I didn't expect to come in here and find _you_. Joy of joy."

"Same to you, fucker. Anyone else from Blackwell?"

"Of course not, you fool. We're the only ones who know of this bunker. Everyone else is trapped in that hell of a storm."

"We're…the only ones here?"

"Do you see anyone else?"

There is a silence and a tremendous feeling of dread passes through Max. She prays Nathan thinks she decided to brave the storm.

"You're right. There is no one else here."

"Why do you sound surprised?"

"Well, because I was only the second person here. Max was here before me."

She curses him repeatedly inside her head for even saying her name to Jefferson, but all the moreso considering the circumstances.

"…did you say Max? As in Max Caulfield? _Maxine Caulfield_ was here?"

"Damn right. I was surprised too, but I came here and she popped out of nowhere."

"Be clearer. It sounds to me as if she actually knew about this bunker, the code to get in, and you just arrived to find her here. Is that right?"

"Yeah, she definitely did. Like I said, she was already in here when I got here."

"Why are you not upset at all? It's like you knew this already."

"Well, I…see, I did know. Since this afternoon." Max curses him again. Is he actually going to reveal everything? "She came into the Two Whales diner, came up to me, and told me everything. She knows every fucking thing, Mark. Not just about the bunker, but about the girls, the photos, and everything. She even knows about what happened to Rachel."

There is a hissed breath. " _How_? How does she know?"

"I have no fucking clue. I just know that she knows everything…and she also outright told me she plans to report to the police."

Jefferson's voice came back with terrible anger. "You goddamn _idiot_! How could you have let her out of your sight? Since this afternoon? What could she have possibly done in that time? The police probably already know!"

"No, no wait, I don't think so." Jefferson continues. "If she did, we would have already been arrested by now. All the same, you should have taken her here the moment she told you that."

"How the fuck was I supposed to do that shit? We were in the middle of a diner in the middle of the day. Did you expect me to just drag her out of there kicking and screaming?"

"Follow her, get her when she alone. Or better yet, call _me_ as soon as you had learned. Instead, you let her go without following and you left me ignorant the entire fucking day. You even let her go _again_ when you saw her earlier. Where the hell is she now? You useless idiot!"

Nathan returns the anger with his own. "Hey, first off, I had a lot on my fucking plate, okay? I was distracted at the time and didn't even think about that! The second time? I have a fucking bad leg and injured ribs, Professor Jackass. I wouldn't have been able to hold her down anyway."

There is a pause. "Distracted at the time? You said she told you everything? Did she…also tell you about this binder?"

There is sound. Jefferson must have picked up the 'Victoria' binder Max threw on the floor earlier.

Nathan's voice came back. "Yeah, she did. I knew it was true before I even came here, but coming here confirms it. You were fucking targeting my goddamn best friend. My goddamn sister."

"You can't get attached to your subject, Nathan. I warned you about this a hundred times. It's the same reason things went south with Rachel."

"Me getting attached had fucking nothing to do with her waking up in the middle of a photoshoot. There are a hundred other girls at Blackwell, Mark. Why did you have to choose Victoria? For fuck's sake, she doesn't even fit your usual theme of innocence and purity."

"There are different levels of innocence, Nathan. Different states of purity. Victoria…is not like Max, but she has her own type of innocence and beauty. This is what you're angry about?"

"Hell fucking yeah I'm angry about that!" There is a sound of glass cracking. "You stay the hell away from her. She's not allowed down here. Find some other girl to fulfill your sick fetish."

" _My_ sick fetish? I recall both of us participating in this wonderful project, Nathan. Don't forget that." A mocking laugh. "Besides, I don't think you have to worry about that anymore. Chances are Victoria is dead. Blackwell was falling apart when I left. There were a lot of pained screams."

Max pales when he said that about Victoria, but comforts herself believe there's no way he could know.

"That's better? I don't want her dead!"

"We don't always get what we want, Nathan. For example, I really wanted Max. To think that she was actually _down here_ and I completely missed her." He sighs wistfully. "Oh, to think of the things we could have done together."

There is a pause. "Or maybe…maybe I'm assuming too much. You came here and saw here when the storm was already going on. That's how you got that leg."

"Yeah, so fucking what?"

"Think, boy. Unless she wanted to end up dead, she wouldn't go back out there." A shuffling sound. "That means…Max, you're still in here, aren't you?"

Her heartbeat quickens. She tries to control her breathing.

"What, seriously? Where the hell could she hide then? There's nowhere in here."

"Max is fairly small. I bet she could squeeze in some place we wouldn't think of, so we'll start searching."

"Fuck you. I got a bad leg and you think I want to help you right now anyway?"

"Still pissed off about Victoria, are we? Well, you'll help – bad leg or not – unless you want to end up in prison. You may be rich and extremely well connected, but all of that will mean shit if she has as much evidence as I think she does."

"Fucking hell."

Footsteps ring out. One is dragging – obviously Nathan's – while the other stumbles now and then but is sturdier. Knowing it won't be long before she is found, Max desperately tries to think of a way out.

A crashing sound. "Goddamn it, how the fuck are we supposed to get her even if we find her? My ribs hurt like hell and you're stumbling."

"She is maybe 130lbs, Nathan. We both outweigh her and, bloody pounding head or not, I can still fight." Another shuffling sound. "Max! Come on out! You probably know what we plan to do already, but if you come on, I promise I won't harm you!"

Can she run past them? Maybe, but then where would she go? If she goes outside, she'll die for sure. Even if she retries, she'll just be right back in the middle of the storm.

She curses herself for dozing at the lighthouse.

"Come the hell out, you stupid bitch! Christ, if only you had been after the money, this would have been so much easier."

"The money? You mean she tried to blackmail you first? And you believed it? Idiot."

"A lot of people try to blackmail me. Why the fuck wouldn't I believe it?"

"Because Max is not like them. She-"

"The representation of good and purity. Yeah, yeah, I fucking get it. Your pure white angel doesn't blackmail, never does anything bad. I bet she doesn't even fucking piss or shit."

"You're all class, Nathan." A crashing sound. "Damn it."

"Not feeling so good, Mark?"

That crashing sound came from very nearby. They're slowly getting closer. Max tries harder to think of a way out, but she can't think of anything. She's trapped in this bunker with them and nobody knows.

Even if they did, by the time the storm is over, they'll need to find her corpse, not her. There's just no way out of this.

"What the hell are you doing?"

Max focuses on listening trying to discern what is happening. From Nathan's question, Mark is doing something strange but what? She can't hear him.

A hand grabs her neck and she screams.

"Here you are, Max!" She struggles viciously but his hand only tightens causing her to gag. "Max Caulfield, if you're going to create a space to hide behind, try to do it without moving equipment I place in an area for a reason."

"You got her?" Nathan asks. "Holy shit, I didn't really believe you when you said she was still here."

"Of course she was here." Mark pushes away the smaller trunk she was using to block her body from view and tries to hold her with both arms. "Now come over and help me."

She bites his hand and, simultaneously, uses the wall as leverage kicking backwards. She manages to trip him using her shoulders and get him to let go.

He tries to grab at her again, but she scrambles away. Nathan hobbles over as quickly as he can and jumps right on top of her trying to use his body to hold her down. She twists and turns inching her way out.

He clutches at her arm to stop her and she responds by pounding on his bad leg causing him to cuss in pain and let go of her. She rolls out from underneath him and is able to get on her feet.

Running across the room, Max ends up tripping over some equipment they had knocked down earlier and slams up against the printer machine. At the other side, Jefferson pushes Nathan away and gets up glaring at her. Frightened, Max looks around and sees the book she dropped earlier and her camera bag.

She grabs the book, gets up and throws it at him. He easily swats it away. His angry expression now turns leisurely as he sees that she isn't going anywhere.

"Max, this isn't like you. Have a seat and we'll talk, alright? Maybe you'd like a drink?" He chuckles at that last part.

"Shut up!"

She picks up her camera bag and wanted to throw it but the memory of her camera stops her. Searching inside her bag, all she came out with were notebooks and instant film for her camera.

It was useless. She knew it was useless. Nonetheless, she took the notebooks out and throws them at Jefferson anyway. He smiles patronizingly and lets the notebook hits his chest meaninglessly.

He remains in spot staring at her as Nathan slowly gets up and goes to stand beside him.

"Why aren't you going after her?" Nathan asks.

"I'm waiting for her to throw everything she can. I don't want to think I didn't give her a chance to give it her all."

"Christ."

"Leave me alone." She says shakily. "I'll tell the police."

"Now Max, we both know that isn't going to happen."

She swallows. "I'll disappear. I'll leave Arcadia Bay and never come back. I swear it. Just give me money to shut me up."

"We both also know you're not going to do that." Jefferson humors her. "Beside, it's cheaper, easier, and safer to just do away with you."

Max's hand reaches into her bag again searching desperately. She feels her camera and passes over it not wanting to destroy it needlessly. In-between some instant film, though, she suddenly feels a foreign object. It has some kind of hole and long tube…

She starts realizing it's a handgun. It's the handgun she got from Victoria earlier and later put it in her camera bag forgetting it entirely. Now it's an ace against her current situation.

"Ran out of things to throw, Max?" Jefferson asks in amusement. "If so, then can we please get started?"

"No, I have one more thing."

She grips the gun and drops her camera bag. When it is revealed, Jefferson's expression drops and Nathan stiffens.

Jefferson looks at her emotionlessly. "I didn't realize you were the conceal carry type, Max."

"I'm not. Don't you recognize this handgun, Nathan?"

Jefferson looks at him sharply. "That is yours? What is she doing with it? What were _you_ doing with it?"

Nathan remains stonefaced, but she speaks up for him. "He was planning to do something stupid. Something that would have brought your whole operation to a close as well as I can. He was going to shoot a girl in Blackwell's bathroom."

"Christ." Jefferson mutters. "If it's not one thing, it's another. You're an idiot, Nathan."

"So you keep reminding me."

"If I don't, who will?"

"Every-fucking-body."

Jefferson sighs. "Alright, Max. You win. What now?"

She swallows. "Both of you stay here. If you move, I'll shoot."

Walking backwards, she inches her way towards the supply area and grabs a roll of duct tape near the sink. Keeping her eyes on them to make sure they don't move, she inches back and throws the tape at Jefferson's feet.

"Tape Nathan up."

"Are you shitting me?" Nathan yells. "I got a hole in my leg and I'm smaller to begin with, but you rather tape me up than _him_?"

"Be quiet, boy. You heard the lady with the large gun. Now put your hands out."

Nathan grumbles and puts his hands in front. Jefferson is about to tape them together when Max stops him.

"No. Put your hands behind your back, Nathan. I want them taped behind your back."

A hesitation but then they do as she demands. Afterwards, she had Jefferson tape Nathan's legs too. At the end, he stands up looking steadily at Max.

"Now?"

She bites her lips. She didn't really think this through. She is still panicking slightly and her thoughts are disorganized. Nonetheless, now that she is in control and with a gun, the ideas are plentiful and all useful.

"There's booze in that cabinet over there, isn't there?" She points towards the end cabinet. "Get a bottle of booze out and drink it."

He raises an eyebrow. "Are you trying to get me drunk so you could photograph me while I'm unconscious?"

"Shut up! Just do it!"

Jefferson does as ordered and takes a bottle out plus a shot glass. He pours a drink and drinks it down. Seeing her wait, he pours another glass and drinks that too, then he hesitates.

"Keep going." Max demands. "Don't stop."

"Max, this is a very expensive bottle of _very_ strong whiskey. Two glasses will make anyone start feeling out of it. Plus I have very bad blood loss from this-" He points to the long gash on his head. "-so I can't drink much more even if you want me to."

"I don't care. Keep drinking until I say stop."

He scowls, but does as demanded. After a fourth glass, he is swaying badly and has trouble staying up. Max demands that he drinks again. He badly pours a fifth glass spilling whiskey all over the floor. As he downs the glass, he suddenly drops it half way and falls to the floor groaning.

"Fucking bullshit." Nathan mutters. "I get taped up but he gets to party."

"Be quiet, Nathan." Max says.

She waits a minute or so staring at Jefferson. When she is sure he is too far out to really be of threat to her, she walks over. Placing the gun on the glass table near the couch, she picks up the duct tape and moves over to Jefferson's body prepared to tape him too.

Grabbing one of his hands to move behind his back, she yelps when it suddenly grabs her back. In a flash, Jefferson jumps at her. She turns and tries to crawl away, but he puts an arm around her neck stopping her.

"Stop it! You're choking me!"

"That's the point, Max." He says slurring his words slightly. "Those glasses really did a number on me, but I'm a big whiskey lover. I can handle my whiskey. Now be a good girl and put your hands behind your back."

"No! Let me go!"

She tries to struggle even harder, but it is futile. Jefferson is injured and he clearly isn't as adept due to being somewhat drunk, but even in this state, his strength is able to overwhelm her.

Twisting and turning, she is able to flip around and pushes her hands against Jefferson's face. Angered, he grabs one arm and forces it down. He tries to grab the other, but Max quickly pulls away. She bites the hand holding her arm down drawing blood, but he doesn't let go.

She yelps when he grabs her hair harshly. "That's not nice, Max, and biting isn't going to work a second time. Now do as I tell you!"

He slaps her hard making Max taste blood in her mouth. She tries to draw her body in and slip through his side, but he quickly grabs her midsection and pulls her back. He then punches her stomach knocking the wind out of her. Tears come to her eyes as her own breathing agitates her midsection with more pain.

"Stop! Stop!"

"Be still and I won't hit you anymore! Do as I say!"

As strong as he is, the whiskey and injury is obviously having some effect too and he is unable to hold her down without her eventually twisting away.

Once again, Max tries to crawl a bit away but he pulls her back using her legs. Feeling her arm brush against the whiskey bottle, Max snatches it and tries to hit Jefferson with it. He blocks her and knocks the bottle out of her hands, but whiskey pours out into his eyes. He shouts out and is forced into letting go.

Scrambling now, Max leaps towards the table and is able to grab the gun. She quickly flips around to try to aim it, but Jefferson leaps blindly towards her and manages to land right on top and the struggle seems as if it was about to start again.

Until a loud shot momentarily deafens the entire room.

Max pauses and looks down. Blood is pouring from a wound in Jefferson's stomach onto her body. He coughs and wheezes pushing himself off her clutching at his stomach. For the first time, fear comes into his eyes.

With him off her, she drags herself away and sits up aiming the gun at him. Without thinking, she fires another shot. Jefferson's neck explodes outwards and a gaping hole is the end result. Blood spurts from his neck and mouth, then he collapses onto the ground not moving.

She stares blankly at his body breathing heavily.

"Holy fucking shit." Nathan mutters staring at Jefferson's body.

His voice startles her and she swings the gun towards his direction causing him to yelp. She quickly gains control of herself and lets the gun drop from her hands realizing the gravity of what she did. She stares at her hands now darken with blood and she looks at Jefferson's body. Her breath hitches. The exhaustion that's been haunting her the entire day comes to a head and overwhelms her.

Afterwards, Max's vision darkens and she collapses.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Chloe calls for what must have been the hundredth time. Again, Max doesn't pick up.

She glances over at Kate snoozing lightly on the bed huddled into herself and not even using a blanket. Victoria is sitting besides her watching the news as she had been since they managed to get out of Arcadia Bay.

162MPH. An 'F3 tornado' as the news calls it. It hit Arcadia Bay at unbelievable speed with absolutely no warning from any weather stations and raged from Thursday night into Friday morning.

Local emergency services – what little there were – not only couldn't even begin to handle the damage, but they were often killed themselves in the chaos. The state of Oregon had to send in assistance and, many painful hours later, assistance also came in from Washington, California, Nevada, Idaho, and more. There were help from states even as far as Minnesota.

The federal government declared an emergency and sent in the army to try to lend assistance and help with evacuation. It was futile, though.

Oregon got assistance through first, but even then, the tornado nearly finished its course by the time they arrived. The others? By the time they came, it was long over. The tornado finished its path of destruction…and what a path it is!

Portland's news stations sent over a helicopter surveying the damage and showing everything on TV. The tornado damaged an area a little under a mile wide but about six miles long and everywhere it went ended in rubbles.

Nearly every news stations in the US covered the event. Meteorologists everywhere found themselves unable to explain how it happened, news anchors were flushed repeating the same facts over and over again to impress their viewers: Most powerful tornado in Arcadia Bay's history! Almost everything destroyed! Deadliest tornado in world history!

That last one disquiets her the most. It might or might not be an exaggeration, but if it is, they have good reason to say it.

Every news station puts the number of fatalities at a minimum of 1,500 dead. Some others put it as high as 3,000. That means that it's possible that more than half of Arcadia Bay is dead.

The three of them tried so, so hard to get as many people to leave as possible. In the end, they might have convinced maybe a handful of people and Chloe isn't sure if they actually left or if they just said they would to get three weird girls off their backs.

Then the weather started becoming strange and they knew they had to get out, so they went for their families.

Joyce…Joyce had thought she lost her mind and refused to go anywhere. Chloe tried to beg on her knees and promised to do everything Joyce wanted if she just went with her that one time, but she responded by saying she actually wanted to schedule an appointment with a psychiatrist for her.

She even went so far as to try to appeal to David, but the asshole thought even less of her pleads and told her to get off drugs.

After the failure that left Chloe severely depressed, they went for the Marsh family. They didn't even bother to try to reason with them. Victoria had the idea to book a hotel room far away from Arcadia Bay and ordered a taxi to take Kate there.

Then she called the Marsh family and made up a story that Kate is trying to commit suicide and that she'll do it unless her entire family comes to stop her. It took some trying and Chloe had to call from her own phone later affirming the story but it worked. Kate called them later to confirm her family came.

They tried the same plan with Joyce and David, but both ignored Victoria telling her to stop following Chloe's pranks. Trying as hard they could, they ultimately had to give up and join the Marsh family at their hotel.

Later on, as the news helicopter passes through town, Chloe saw the Two Whales diner had been torn to pieces. She's been quiet since then.

Right now, all she is concerned about is _where the hell is Max_?

The news reported that a mysterious called name 'Max Caulfield' called various radio stations to try to warn of the tornado, though everyone ignored her, but there have been no other news since though some reporters tried to actively look for her. A few resourceful ones even trolled her social media to show viewers photos.

Both Victoria and Kate tried to convince Chloe that Max is okay because, with her powers, Max is the one person who is guaranteed to survive. Logically, she knew they were right but a feeling inside of her keeps the worry alive.

After all, if she is definitely alive, why had she not contacted any of them yet? It's been over 24 hours since they last talked to her.

She has lost everything else. Her lover, her parents, her home, and possibly her whole damn town. If she loses Max too, what will she have left? What would be the point of life anymore? To get high until she dies of an overdose?

If nothing else, she keeps up hope for that reason. Because Max's death would effectively mean her death.

"Christ, would you stop moping already? You're making me depressed." Victoria says not turning from the TV.

She doesn't respond.

"We already told you. Max can't die. Literally. She _literally_ can't die. Wherever she is, she has more reason to worry that we're dead than we have to worry of the other way around."

"Why hasn't she called us?" Chloe mutters.

"How the fuck do I know? There's a thousand reasons why. She might have lost her phone, she might be in a bomb shelter somewhere with no signal, maybe she tried but all communication towers are destroyed, and a lot more."

"All your reasoning means she's still in Arcadia Bay. Why would she still be there?"

"Again, there's a thousand reasons. Most obvious: the truck she borrowed from you got destroyed. The tornado didn't exactly treat cars nicely."

"She could have reached the rescue crews and gotten out, though."

"Maybe she just didn't reach them _yet_. The entire damn place is in rubbles. Going places might be a bit hard and that's assuming she wasn't in an obscure location when the storm hit."

Again, logically, Chloe knew Victoria has a point but the feeling remained. Every hour that passes, the feeling gets stronger.

This is made so much worse by the fact that her last contact to them had been to Victoria asking for _Nathan's_ phone number. Chloe knew she was confronting Nathan, but there was a confusing sense of urgency in her voice. It raises her heckles.

"I'm going outside for a smoke."

Victoria turns to stare in annoyance at her, but Chloe ignores it. Outside, it is raining lightly, so she remains in the hotel patio staring out at it as she raises a cigarette to her lips. Not even bothering to light it, she just sucks on the cigarette trying not to think of Max and failing miserably.

She hated waiting here. She hated watching the TV constantly waiting for news when all the news is interested in is repeating the death tolls. She hated visiting emergency websites and going through names of people confirmed to be found – alive or otherwise.

She wanted to _do_ something, but has no ideas what to do or even the means to get back to Arcadia.

When the rain got a little heavier and droplets started falling towards her, Chloe puts out the cigarette and pockets the remains. She steps back into the room where the TV is still playing with the news, though Victoria is now lying on her side near Kate's feet. Even she apparently gets tired of watching the news sometimes and decided to go for a snooze.

She walks to the other side of the room and grabs the remote aiming it at the TV. She pauses before turning it off. After a minute, she lowers the remote in disgust. Even if they're not telling her what she wants to hear, they are her main source of information about what's happening. She can't turn off the TV.

Turning around to put the remote back, Chloe's eyes suddenly land on Victoria's keys. She glances through the window at Victoria's car parked in front of their room. An urge arises in her.

She has no trouble following through on that urge. Chloe Price has never been known for her thoroughness of thought nor her impulse control.

Exiting the hotel room with the keys in her hand, she walks right to the car. It beeps twice as she remote unlocks it and Chloe smiles thinking that she'll get to drive something that works for once.

" _Ahem._ "

Chloe freezes, then shuts her eyes painfully. Stopped before even getting started. Tired, she turns to face a glaring Victoria. They stare at each other silently. Chloe's resigned eyes meeting Victoria's furious ones.

"So you're not even going to apologize? Figures." Victoria says acidly. "I was only lying with my eyes closed, Price. I heard you when you came back in and I heard you when you took my keys."

Chloe's continued silence only infuriates her more.

"What do you think you're going to accomplish driving back there? They have hundreds of rescuers and soldiers combing through the city looking for survivors. Do you think you'll find Max before them?"

"I might. I know a few places Max might go that they wouldn't bother to check."

Victoria didn't buy it. "None of which are probably the kind of places she would go during a storm."

"I want to try anyway."

The blonde glares at her for a minute. "Tell me where you intend to go. Just name the place and, if it has any wits about it, I'll come with you."

She didn't actually have any planned itinerary in mind when she intended to drive for Arcadia. She was planning to just drive from place to place looking as she just wanted to do something instead of sitting around.

However, when Victoria demanded a place, it came to her fairly easily. She knows of only one place that might be able to withstand a storm of that magnitude.

"The bunker at the barn."

To her annoyance, Victoria didn't seem impressed by the idea. "It's a decent idea and one unlikely to be found by rescue crews. Do you even remember the code to get in, though?"

Her mouth drops. She racks her mind trying to think of it, but couldn't think of it. She doesn't remember any of the numbers at all.

Victoria sighs. "You idiot." Another long sigh. "Alright, lets go. I'll do the driving, though."

"You're…going to take me?"

"I said I'll come, didn't I? You think you're the only one who's been worried all this time?" Victoria snaps. "Besides, I don't want you driving my car."

Victoria takes the keys from Chloe and gets into the driver seat. Quickly going to the passenger side, Chloe gets in alongside her.

"Wait, do you remember the code?"

"Yeah. Before you ask, I'm not telling either. I want some insurance that you're not going to try and disappear with my car again."

Chloe scowls, but ignores the dig. "What about Kate?"

"She's staying. Her family is here and it's safer here. For all we know, another tornado could pop out of fucking nowhere."

Pulling out of the parking lot, Victoria speeds down the road heading towards Arcadia Bay.

An hour and a half later, they enter the outer exterior of Arcadia Bay where the barn is actually located. However, Victoria had to come to a stop in the middle of the road when she comes upon a fallen tree blocking the path.

Growling, the blonde steps out of the car to survey the road. Chloe follows after her. Outside, she whistles softly. The road was blocked by an endless amount of debris stretching for as far as the eye could see.

If it wasn't trees, it was large rocks, and there were bodies of deer and other animals in some parts.

"We didn't think this through." Victoria says blandly.

"We can still do it." Chloe says adamantly. "How far is the barn? We'll walk through this."

Victoria purses her lips. "I'm guessing about two miles from where we're standing to the barn itself. Walking over this shit, though, it'll take far longer than normal and be a hell of a workout."

"Then we better get started."

Not waiting for a response, Chloe jumps over the fallen tree and begins walking. She listens closely, though, and eventually hears Victoria following along.

True to the blonde's words, a walk that normally would have taken maybe an hour ended up lasting nearly two and they were already breathing hard before it was even half way finished. They had to stop several times just to massage their feet and Victoria cussed repeatedly about her impractical shoes.

When they finally reached the barn, though, they freeze at the sight. The entire area is a mess of rubble. The nearby house looked like a bomb hit it and the barn itself had been demolished. Nothing remained except a pile of broken wood.

Chloe is about to wail aloud at the sight when Victoria points towards the abandoned house. "Is that what I think it is?"

She looks where the blonde is pointing. There was an overturned rusted vehicle lying in the rubble of the house. It looks like the junk car that sitting useless beside the barn, but looking closer, she starts realizing it's actually her truck.

"My truck! That means Max is definitely here!"

She rushes over to the area where she knows the stairwell to the bunker is. Luckily, most of the area is clear and she is able to get past by kicking away some of the wood debris. The trap door appeared to be missing, but the stairwell remained in good condition.

Pushing away some more debris, Chloe descends down and runs towards the door. Victoria eventually arrive alongside her and enters the code '5 4 2'. Doubting she'll need it any longer, Chloe nonetheless makes sure to memorize it this time.

When the door unlocks, she rushes to turn the handle and open the door. The two walks together inside. As soon as they step in, though, a voice calls out.

"Hello? Who's there? I need help!"

Victoria starts. "Nathan? Nathan, is that you?"

"Victoria? Oh, thank fucking God."

The blonde rushes ahead to see what's going on. A bloodcurdling scream rings out a moment later making Chloe scramble afterwards to see what's happening.

When she came in, her blood turn cold as she looks down and sees the bloody bodies of some man and Max. She rushes over and clutches Max's body in her arm.

"Oh Max, Max, no, no, this can't be happening. Fuck, no, goddamn it."

She keeps muttering cusses mindlessly as her eyes takes in the girl's bloody form. Victoria rushes over and places a hand on Max's neck, then leans against her chest listening.

"Wait, she's alive. She's breathing and I can hear her heart."

Relief flows almost painfully through Chloe. Her head cleared a bit from overwhelming panic, she examples Max's body to see where her injuries is only to realize she seems to only have scratches and grazes. Where is all the blood coming from?

"She's alright, damn it, now would you two help me?" Nathan says a bit away.

Chloe looks at him noticing him for the first time. He has his hands taped behind his back and his legs were taped too. He looks dehydrated and his face is a little gaunt as if he hasn't drunk or ate anything for a while.

Victoria moves as if to go help but Chloe grabs her arm. "Hold up. Don't free him until we know what the hell is going on here. Why is he taped up and Max is bloody? Also, who is that guy?"

Glancing at the man, Victoria mutters, "That's Mark Jefferson."

"Mark Jeff- wait, isn't this the asshole Max said is a part of this whole bunker bullshit?"

"That's him." Victoria says. She flips Jefferson's body over and examines him. "I think I see where all the blood on Max came from. He's been shot a few times."

"Yeah, your girl shot him." Nathan says wheeze laughing. "The gun is under that table there."

Victoria reaches underneath and pulls it out. She looks at it critically.

"Should we be touching that?" Chloe asks nervously. "All of this seems bad."

"It's already bad. Max shot him." Victoria turns to Nathan. "Explain what happened."

"Your girl pulled a handgun on us, had Mark taped me up, then tried to get him drunk, but he tricked her and they got into a fight. She got ahold of the gun and she shot him."

"How did the three of you come here?"

"Look, can I get some water and food, please? I've been here since fucking Thursday and I haven't eaten and drink anything. Victoria?"

Chloe growls, "Shut up, asshole! You'll starve until-"

"Price, let me handle this." Victoria interrupts. "Tend to Max. She needs you."

The blonde goes to the other side to pick up two bottles of water. She hands one to Chloe who quickly tries to feed it to Max and crouches holding the other up to Nathan's lips. He drinks rapidly choking at points. When she pulls away, he breathes heavily for a few minutes, then glances up at her.

"Aren't you going to get me out?"

"Not until you explain. How did the three of you come here?"

He sighs. "She was here first. I rushed here from Blackwell when I found out I couldn't get out of town. I came in and found her here. Later on, Mark came in."

"How did you get this hole in your leg? Did Max shoot you too?"

"No, I got stabbed by a flying tree before coming here."

A pause. "Nathan, on Thursday, Max went to see you, didn't she? What happened then?"

"You knew…? Fuck's sake. She tried to blackmail me for five mil and asked me about Rachel. Once she got everything straight, she went off somewhere. It was a lie, though, she was planning to turn me in." He hesitates looking at her. "How much of this did you know? Did you know she was going to do all of that?"

Victoria nods. "I knew she was going to see you. I've been investigating this whole thing with her the entire week."

"What the fuck? Why?"

"You never should have touched Kate, Nathan. That set Max on your ass." Victoria chuckles. "Actually, you never should have went through that whole bathroom thing. All of this would have never happened then."

"That _bitch_ over there was trying to blackmail me, you think I was going let it go?"

Victoria glances at her. "Blackmail? Is that why you've been avoiding me? Because Price blackmailed you and that's why you tried to shoot her?"

"Bullshit." Chloe says. "He's leaving out a few important details. Like how I almost got caught up in his kidnapping fetish."

"But you _didn't_." Nathan mutters. "I ended up being the one fucked in everyway. It's your-"

"You should have paid her." Victoria cuts in sharply making Nathan reel in surprise. "What was she asking for? Maybe a million? Look at what happened now, Nathan. Jefferson is dead, you're taped up in a bunker, and now several people know the extent of your crimes and it's going to get exposed."

She continues viciously. "How much are you going to have to pay for a legal defense? Several millions? That's just for your fucking _lawyers_ , Nathan. How much will your family have to pay in PR control before this all blows over?"

"Here's the best question of all: Was what she was blackmailing you for worth more than years in prison?"

Nathan clenches his teeth before muttering in resignation, "No."

"Exactly. I did learn a few business tricks while visiting your house, Nathan." She says coldly. "One of the rules is that you pay when not paying cost more. You think blackmail is a curse? Most people in your situation would have thanked God repeatedly that whoever might expose them asked for money instead of going straight to the police."

Chloe listens in impressed silence. The truth is that she only wanted enough money to pay off her debts and maybe a little extra. She would have jumped if Nathan had offered $5,000. She also would have taken $3,000. Hell, she probably also would have taken $1,000 albeit grumbling about it.

To think that she could have asked for so much more. Or did Nathan actually think she was trying to blackmail him for a lot more than just a few thousands? Did he think she wanted a million?

"B-but Victoria, I don't have that kind of money. I would have had to go to my dad."

"Which you also have to do now and you have to tell him a lot worse things."

Nathan looks away in anger. Victoria is distracted from her vitriol as a groan comes from Max. Chloe quickly tends to the girl in her arms wiping away at her forehead and patting her cheek tenderly.

Max's eyes flutter a bit and her mouth opens and closes. She lets out a few coughs and groans again.

"Max, slow down. It's alright. It's me, Chloe, and Victoria's here too. You're safe now."

She blinks slowly and her eyes flit back and forth without focusing. Nonetheless, a small smile comes to her face.

"That's…wonderful. You're both still alive."

"Yes, we are. Kate is alive too. We all are. You're going to be alive too." Chloe lifts the water bottle up to Max again. "Here, drink this."

Gulping down water brings life back into her. Coughing some more, she grabs onto Chloe and tries to lift herself up with the assistance of her friend. Once on her feet, Max surveys the room staring particularly at Mark Jefferson's body.

Then he eyes land on Nathan who returns the stare silently. She looks at Chloe and Victoria next smiling.

"You're both here." Another couple of coughs escape her. "That means the storm…?"

"Yeah." Chloe nods. "It's over."

Concern crosses her face. "The evacuation. How did it go?" There is silence. Max's face drops. "That bad, huh?"

"I'm sorry, Max." Chloe quickly says. "We tried as hard as we could."

"I know you did, Chloe. It…I was too idealistic. I should have known how we'd come across. I called radio stations and tried to warn them too but they all ignored me. I also warned Nathan and he ignored me too even though he thought I was a psychic." She sighs. "What chance did you guys have? But…your families. Did you at least?"

Another silence. "No…"

"We were able to trick Kate's family into leaving." Victoria quickly says. "But the Prices…we couldn't convince them to leave. On the news, we saw the Two Whales diner had collapsed. We don't know for sure that means they're dead, but…"

"How many dead have been reported so far? Have you heard?"

"The figures are all over the place. Some places say as little as a thousand. Some say three thousand. We do know for a fact there were survivors, though. There had been interview, footage of rescue teams retrieving people."

"And Blackwell?"

Victoria shakes her head. "Almost no news."

"Oh God…" Max says feeling weak. "I can't believe it." Swallowing the tightness in her chest down, Max looks at Nathan. "As if this tragedy isn't enough, we're going to reveal this unbelievable bullshit to the entire town too."

"You don't have to do that." Nathan says weakly.

"Actually, yes, we do." Max retorts. "You're not going to get out of this, Nathan."

"I, uh…Victoria, please…" He says her name pleadingly. She looks at him silently.

Chloe glance suspiciously at her. "Don't you dare, Victoria. You also agreed this is the best course of action. Remember that he and Jefferson were targeting you too."

"That's not true! I just found out about it and there's no way I would have agreed! She-" He gestures with his head at Max. "-even says Jefferson was planning to kill me."

Victoria furrows her eyebrows and turns to Max. "Is what he says true?"

"Yes, it is. It's…it's actually why I needed his phone number from you. To warn him that I _knew-_ " She emphasize the word knowing the two would get that she means a retry. "-that Jefferson was going to kill him if he confronts him about targeting you."

Looking down at Nathan, Victoria lets out a relieved sigh. "I'm glad to hear that. You haven't been a very good friend to me this week, Nathan, but I'm glad to hear you still care."

"Of course I care. I told you before, didn't I? I didn't mean to aim the gun at you. It was always at the damn bitch." He looks at the three of them. "But I guess it doesn't matter now, does it?"

"It doesn't. You and your father are going to prison." Max insists. "I know he's involved in this too."

"Yeah, I know. You know everything." He hesitates. "Are you sure I can't change your mind?"

Max looks at him incredulously. "Are you serious? How do you think you're going to get out of this?"

"Sometimes, it's worth it to pay." Nathan says glancing at Victoria. "If you let this go, I'll pay you five million."

Beside her, Chloe lets out a hissed breath. "Five m-million?"

Nathan nods. "Five million. All you have to do is walk away from this."

"No." Max says. "I don't want it." She clutches Chloe's hand to keep her from talking. "It's not worth it."

Sweat pours down Nathan's head. "Six million?" Max shakes her head and is about to say something when he quickly adds. "Plus I'll get her family out. You did say her family is still trapped in Arcadia Bay, right?"

Max's mouth drops. "How can you offer that? Stop lying!"

"It's not a lie. My dad…he can hire some pretty good rescue teams. He'll hire them exclusively to look for her family."

"Rescue crews are already doing that. Your dad isn't going to do better."

"Call my dad. I'll give you the number." Nathan says desperately. "I bet he can convince you to do it."

"No, I don't-"

"Perhaps we should give it a try, Max." Victoria says quietly.

"Victoria…" Max looks at her with disappointment.

"Don't get me wrong! I want to see justice as much as you, but now we have to think of the Price family too." Victoria says quickly. "Nathan is right. I've seen it myself. Nothing save lives like money can. Right now, rescue crews are going through Arcadia but they're looking for everyone. There's also only so many of them. If we can get a rescue crew in here specifically for Chloe's family, they might stand a better chance of finding them before the worst happens."

Max hesitates and Victoria continues, "If it doesn't work out, we can always say 'no' and just expose them, right?"

She wanted to insist on refusal but the fact that Joyce and David is now on the line complicates matters. If there was a better option to save them she refuses to take and they end up dead, it would haunt her. She wouldn't be able to take it.

"Max…" Chloe whispers softly. "Whatever you choose, I'll stand by you. I love you."

She shuts her eyes and hisses to herself. When she opens her eyes again, she has a new resolve.

"Alright, we'll listen-" Nathan sighs in relief at hearing this. "-but I just want to make sure Sean Prescott doesn't screw us somehow. Victoria, can we do anything?"

"Already ahead of you. Max, Price, you both take photos of this place. As many as possible and make sure it's as clear as possible. Also, get some shots of Nathan and Jefferson too. I'll do the rest."

They go into action. Max and Chloe pulls out their phone and snaps dozens of shots of every inch of the bunker and both Nathan and Mark Jefferson.

Victoria, meanwhile, takes the handgun to the sink and washes off the blood, then places it in her purse. Then she grabs a large bag from the supply shelf and returns to the other room. She takes out the binders of the girls, snap photos of everything, and then shoves the binders into the bag. She does the same with every letter and piece of paper mentioning anything incriminating.

Once finished, she walks over and removes the tape on Nathan's legs. "Alright, get up, Nathan. We're walking back to my car."

"Where are we going?" Chloe asks.

"We have to get away from here. We're going to do this, but we're going to give ourselves the most advantageous position possible. We will control the negotiation. To do that, we need to get away from here. I don't like how isolated this place is and how something could happen to us here without anyone ever finding out."

Hearing that, it is quickly agreed to leave. They march Nathan outside and begin walking back towards Victoria's car. Both Nathan and Max stare in amazement at the unbelievable debris and damage that covers the entire area.

Two hours later, they arrive back at the car. They're all breathing heavily at the exertion and were happy to get into the vehicle.

Inside, Victoria is the first to speak, "Alright, I'm ready to call Sean Prescott now. Price, get me Nathan's phone."

Chloe reaches into his pocket and takes out the phone handing it to Victoria. She looks through the contact list and presses Sean Prescott's name putting the call on speakerphone. She makes a sign for everyone to remain silent. A few rings afterwards, the call picks up.

" _Nathan, if I warned you once, I warned you a thousand times. I've already warned you more than once. Do not call-"_

"Sean Prescott, I presume?"

A tense pause. _"…yes. May I ask who is calling and why do you have my son's phone?"_

"Are you alone right now?"

" _Yes, I am alone. Again, who are you?"_

"That is not important. Question for you: How much liquidity do you have?"

Another pause and then Sean's voice returns with far more menace. _"I think I'm beginning to see where this is going. If you're doing what I think you're doing, you might want to rethink it, my dear."_

"You think incorrectly. I know that because you would not take that tone with me if you did. This, Sean, is blackmail."

" _Blackmail implies you have a few things on me."_

"I have more than just a few things. I have a lot of things. A lot of very bad things. Does the words Nathan Prescott, Mark Jefferson, and barn mean anything to you?"

His voice returns with practiced ease. _"I don't know-"_

Victoria wasn't having it. She cuts him off sharply, "Don't you try that shit with me, Sean. I have a _very_ short temper and I am just as willing to hang you up publicly as I am taking money from you. In case you think there's nothing connecting you, there were several letters linking you to the barn, so don't play games with me."

"… _I see. That's disappointing. I thought I specified that those were to be destroyed."_

"They weren't and I have them."

" _Alright, I've played this game before. How much will it cost me to make this disappear and, assuming you have him, to get my son back?"_

"Two things. The first is twenty million in cash."

Chloe nearly chokes aloud and Max had to quickly cover her mouth. Beside them, Nathan's eyes widen dramatically.

" _Young lady, you seem to believe I'm wealthier than I really am. Perhaps I give off that impression, but I assure you I can not grow money on trees. At any given moment, I have perhaps only five million in liquid assets."_

"Bullshit. You have maybe two to three million in cash, but over a hundred million in stocks. Most of those, I know, aren't completely liquid, but I bet at least 50 million or so is. You also have some very wealthy friends. Either you sell the stocks to get me my money or you can give some of your other assts to them as collateral for a loan. Your choice."

A strained voice returns. _"Who are you? How do you know so much about me? I know for a fact this kind of information would not be…in that place. Do you know me personally?"_

"Yes, I do. Want a hint? Think Galveston, Texas a few years ago." Victoria says airily. "Now do you accept or do I give a call to some very hungry reporters?"

"… _agreed."_

"Good. The second thing I want involves the storm that passed through Arcadia Bay recently. You know of that, right? You are to hire rescue teams and try to rescue a number of people there. Get ready to write down some names."

" _Go ahead."_

"You are to rescue these following families: The Berrys, the Grahams, the Price, the Scotts, the Christensens, the Wagners, the Marshs, the Clotts, and the Richards. Got it? After you rescue these people, you are to assist in the rescue of everyone else in Arcadia, but those families I listed get first priority."

" _It would be helpful if you could tell me where to find these people."_

"I can give the possible locations of the Prices, the Christensens, the Wagners, and the Richards, but I've lost sight of the rest so you'll have to do your best. Their possible locations are as such."

Victoria gives the names of several places where Chloe's family works and lives, Blackwell, where her friends lives, and some seemingly random locations.

"Oh, and Sean? Ensure you get the best rescue crew possible because if you find these people, I will lower the blackmail to fifteen million and I will throw in Mark Jefferson's body."

" _...I see. Agreed."_

"Good. That is everything then. You are to arrive with a large SUV carrying the full amount in three hours to the Holiday Motel in Forest Grove. I will be leaving with the SUV and your son's phone. You will be leaving with your son."

" _I'm supposed to get twenty million in cash and rescue all these people in three hours time?"_

"Avoiding decades in prison is a very good motivator, I hear. You will get the money in that time. As for the people, I will wait for 24 hours for news of their rescue. If you make good, I will leave five million and a note telling you where Mark Jefferson's body is in a car for you to pick up."

" _Girl, I am known for my controlled temper, but you really try me. Are you sure this is the kind of game you want to be playing? Do you know what I can do? What I have access to? I'll offer you a better deal right now. Leave my son and all that you found-"_

"Thanks for the offer, but no. I am _very_ well aware of what you're capable of and I'm more than willing to do this. I will be expecting you in Forest Grove."

She hangs up. As soon as she did, most of the occupants of the car let out a relieved sigh.

Afterwards, Chloe grins exuberantly, "That was a hell of a call, Victoria. Holy shit. Twenty million and rescue teams? How did you know all that stuff about his finances? I would have believed him about that five million."

"The Prescotts are real estate barons. Just based off the bit of public knowledge about how much revenue their companies pull in and how much their known real estate are worth, anyone can tell they must have at least a few tens of millions in assets."

"But I also have an ace." Victoria gestures with her head towards Nathan. "I've visited his house, I've seen their vacation houses, and I've also seen a few of their bills and maybe some revenue statements lying here and there. Nathan also said a few things. I still don't know exactly how much they have, but I'm guessing it's close to a billion."

"What was that shit about Galveston?" Nathan asks.

"Just a plain lie. I know your dad goes to Houston frequently and you mentioned a few times he likes to go to meetings at restaurants in Galveston. I figured if I make a vague reference to it, it would drive him nuts trying to figure out who backstab him."

"Fuck…"

"I'm kind of nervous." Max says. "He doesn't sound happy. What if he tries something? I'm worried."

"Don't be." Victoria reassures. "That's why I said he must do all of that in three hours. Can you imagine trying to get twenty million in fucking cash and organize rescue crews to Arcadia Bay in three hours time? I probably couldn't do that even if I had the money and you gave me a week."

"But-" She grins. "-I figure he might have an idea and the short time will make him move in a mad rush to get things done. It will prevent him from having time to think and execute any schemes, except maybe for the most basic ones."

"Basic ones?" Max asks.

"Yeah. I think he'll probably try to put a GPS tracker on that SUV I want. That's why we're going to abandon it after getting the money out."

"One thing annoys me." Chloe says. "Why did you have him try to rescue all those people? You even put in Kate's family even though we know they're safe."

"That's the point. It's a diversion. I put in random people names, names of people we want rescued, and even the name of a judge in Arcadia. I want him to think these names mean something. If I only said the Prices, Christensens, and Wagners, how long do you think before he begins to connect them to one of us? Even now, I'm still a little nervous because that he might still find a link."

Chloe looks suitably impressed, but also still nervous. She bites her lips anxiously.

"Don't we have a weak point?" She asks glancing at Nathan. "Can't he reveal everything?"

Victoria purses her lips. She starts up her car and begins driving. "I think I can convince Nathan not to say anything. Are you listening, Nate?"

"Yes?" He says staring warily at her.

"When I do the exchange with your dad, I will have you blindfolded and gagged. After it's all done, all you have to do is pretend you don't know any of us. Got it?"

"Yeah, I got it."

"Hold on." Chloe interrupts. "What's to stop him from revealing everything?"

"I'm getting there. I'll give you a reason to keep quiet about everything, Nathan." She starts slowly. "As you can figure out, Sean will be pissed at you. Extremely. I can make it so that it's not your fault. I won't say anything about what happened, so Sean will be forced to figure out everything on his own."

"There's only one thing I'll reveal: That I kidnapped you during the confusion of the storm as you were trying to get away. That I grabbed you straight from Blackwell. Got it? You don't care about his money or him so long as your ass is out of the fire, aren't I right? This is the way to do it."

"And how are you going to do the exchange without him seeing you? You've been to my house, Victoria. I think he'll recognize you. Plus how would I explain how I did not recognize your voice?"

"I'll muffle my voice and I'll be dressed to the hilt. He should not recognize me. Like I said, all you have to do is pretend you got kidnapped from Blackwell."

"Alright, I'll go for this. It saves my ass."

Victoria seems unsure. "Can I trust you with this, Nate?"

He snorts. "Don't ask stupid questions. That money won't kill me or my dad and I get to stay out of jail. He'll probably blame everything on Mark anyway. Sounds like a total win to me."

"More than you think." Max says getting everyone's attention. "If you ever reveal anything to your father, I will send him this."

She holds up her phone and plays the recording of the conversation she had with him at the Two Whales diner. Nathan's eyes widen then narrows at her angrily. Victoria smiles at her impressed.

"That's my girl." Chloe ruffles Max's hair. "It seems like we're all set. Where are we going anyway?"

"To Forest Grove. To get a few things and prepare."

The few things turn out to be a mostly clothes. The first place Victoria stopped was a mall where she went in while Chloe and Max remained watching Nathan. She returned with several bags of clothes that she shoved into the trunk.

The next place they went to is a gas station where she buys a gas container, fills it with gas, and puts in the back too. The next and final place is a restaurant near the meeting place. She went in taking the bags she bought. Half an hour later, she comes back inside the car dressed to the hilt in clothes.

Every inch of her from her feet to her neck is covered and covered in multiple layers of clothes. Her head is covered in a large face mask that nonetheless still seem to fit snugly and the bit of skin that is exposed seems to have been darkened significantly with make-up. Even her eyes are different. She is wearing dark green eye contacts.

"How do I look?" Her voice comes muffled and more masculine.

"Pretty damn good." Chloe says. "I don't think I'd be able to recognize you in this get-up."

"You better not. It's fucking hot as balls in here and I'm having a hell of a time moving too."

"You look good, Victoria." Max reassures. "I can't tell your real form and your voice sounds really different."

"Good. It helps that even though Sean does know me, he doesn't know me enough to recognize little details that would give me away."

She takes a breath. "Alright, there's about an hour before Sean Prescott will arrive. Here's the plan: Chloe, you will drive with Max about half an hour back the way we came and wait for me along the road shoulder. When Prescott arrives, I will call you and keep the phone on for you to listen to everything."

She swallows. "Max, the gun is in my bag. If something goes wrong, I'll need you to help me 'redo' everything. Do you understand?"

Chloe's mouth dries. "Victoria, are you asking Max to-"

"I'll do it." Max interrupts. "You're doing a lot for us, Victoria. I'll do whatever I can to protect you."

"Thank you. Nathan, give me your hands."

He does as asked and she removes the tape that's been holding him the entire time. He rubs his hands gratefully afterwards and nods in thanks.

"Now come out of the car with me. Chloe, drive to where I said. I'll call you both soon."

When Victoria and Nathan exit the car, Chloe maneuvers over to the driver seat and drives off glancing at Victoria the entire way. A half hour later, they stop off to the side of the route and wait nervously.

Chloe reaches over and clutches Max's hand who returns the gestures reassuringly. Some time later, they jump when Chloe's phone rings. Snatching it, Chloe picks up but remains silent afraid to even say anything lest she mess up Victoria's plans somehow.

" _Hello? Is anyone there?"_

"Yeah, uh, it's me."

"Good. A car just parked at the motel I'm at and I got a call from Prescott saying he's here. I had booked a room and taped Nathan up again inside and blindfolded him. We're all set. I'm keeping this phone on, so keep listening. Oh, and I just got another idea. Max, start recording."

She puts the phone on speaker so that both she and Max can listen as the latter quickly pulls out her phone to begin recording. There is shuffling and footsteps through the phone. The suspense tenses the both of them.

" _You've arrived. With two large goons too. I was hoping you'd come alone, but no problem. I assume you have everything I asked?"_

The voice of Sean Prescott appears – low and angry. _"I have it and I needed those two 'goons' to drive the SUV you asked for and to make sure you don't try anything. So do you have a name or should I just keep saying 'you'?"_

" _Call me Kristine."_

" _Is that another reference to your vast knowledge about me? That your name is the same as my daughter's?"_

" _We're not here to chat, are we?"_

" _I suppose not."_

" _Good. Ask you men to move to the other end of the parking lot so I can check the money is right."_

Muffled voices sound out in the background. What sounds like a trunk opening, then Victoria's voice reappears.

" _This looks about right. I don't have a counterfeit detector on me, so I'll check it more thoroughly later."_

" _Still don't trust me?"_

" _I have a lot on you and you're willing to pay me twenty million to keep them a secret, but any good blackmailer still remains distrustful all the same. You should be in the know, right, Sean?"_

" _I am in the know, which is why I wonder whether you really are. After all, a good blackmailer knows to keep his business to profitable trout and bass rather than aiming for sharks."_

" _You are powerful, wealthy, and dangerous. I know that first hand. However, even fishing for sharks is possible with the right tools and I have those tools. You will try to target me, but it's hopeless. You will never know who I am."_

" _My network is unimaginably large."_ His voice is a low, angry hiss. _"I've dealt with your kind before and they've always regretted messing with me. A number of them aren't around anymore. What's to stop me from killing you right now?"_

" _The fact that you still don't have your son yet or the evidence I have on you."_

" _What's to stop me from hunting you down afterwards?"_

" _Like I said, the fact that you have no idea who I am."_

" _I can find out."_

" _I'll be waiting. Meanwhile, what about the rescue crews?"_

" _They'll be in Arcadia combing the area down in about an hour. That's my end of the bargain. Now where's yours?"_

" _Nathan is here. Here is the key to the room containing him."_

" _And the evidence? You don't think I'm paying you all of this just to let you keep that, do you?"_

" _You will get it in the car along with the five million and note about Jefferson. If you don't succeed with the rescue, you'll only get the evidence and nothing else."_

" _I don't think so. I'm giving you the money upfront so you have to-"_

" _I don't have to do anything. You have to wait. Now I'm leaving."_

Some cussing can be heard, but it fades away. Several minutes later, Victoria's voice comes through the line clearly.

" _Can you two hear me?"_

"Yeah, we're here." Chloe responds.

" _Did you get all that? I managed to get him to admit to some pretty damning things."_

"Like father, like son." Chloe cackles. "It's not too specific, but it's enough to make him pissed."

"You're a real badass, Victoria." Max says laughing. "So what do we do now?"

" _I'm driving out the city in the SUV they got me. I'm going to make a few stops and look around to make sure I'm not being followed, but I should be ready to go to where you are soon. Text me your coordinates and I'll be there later."_

She hangs up. Chloe searches up the GPS coordinates on her GPS and texts it to Victoria, then the two of them return to waiting anxiously.

Some 40 minutes later, a black SUV pulls up next to them. Inside, Victoria rips off all her extra layers of clothing to reveal her normal chic suit underneath. She lets out a long breath as if finally able to breathe, then comes out. Max and Chloe steps out of the car too.

"Alright, you two, we're going to need the entire trunk and some of the back seat to hold all of this."

She pops the trunk open and Chloe is winded seeing the enormous stacks of cash. It is a stack literally larger than she is. She stares at the money in wonder realizing that all her money troubles are finally over.

"Enough staring, Chloe, lets do this. Pop my trunk open."

Chloe snaps out of it and does as asked. Victoria pulls out the gas can then starts transferring the money into the empty clothing bags she got from the store. With all three of them doing it, they're able to fill all three bags fairly quickly. One bag had to go into the backseat.

Afterwards, Victoria grabs the gas can and begins pouring gas inside of the SUV.

"Are you doing what I think you're doing?" Max asks in surprise.

"Burning it? Yes, that's what I'm doing."

Chloe looks at Max. "Why?"

"Because I'm paranoid and think there's something here that will let Prescott find me, because I'm crazy, and because I think burning cars are cool." She finishes and throws the gas can inside too. "Now ladies, please get into the car. Chloe, prepare to drive."

They get in. Victoria remains outside staring down both sides of the road. Once she is positive the coast is clear, she pulls out a ball of paper, lights it on fire with a lighter, then throws it in the vehicle watching. When the car seat catches fire which begins spreading, she immediately jumps into the backseat.

"Drive, drive, drive!"

Chloe speeds away noticing how the flames inside the car become large enough to be visible even a distance away.

Some time later, Victoria begins issuing orders to start taking the back roads and residential roads as they travel back to the hotel where Kate and her family remain. Some time later, as they pull up, they spot Kate anxiously waiting on the patio and she jumps up excitedly seeing the car.

When Max steps out of the car, Kate runs up throwing her arms around her. "Max! Max, I'm so happy you're back! We, all of us were so worried, and Chloe was really doing badly. I'm so glad you're back."

Max laughs lightly. "I'm happy to be back too." She touches Kate's face. "How are you, sweetie? How's your family?"

"We were able to save my family, Max. I feel so blessed knowing that I still have mine while others have lost theirs and so much more. I owe it all to you, Chloe, and Victoria."

"Maybe Chloe and Victoria only." Max smiles sadly. "I couldn't convince anyone about the storm. I tried so hard, Kate, but-"

"You convinced _us_ , Max. I, my family, Chloe, Victoria – all of us would be dead if it hadn't been for you."

"Kate, I…I…"

"Everything I said is true. I lost my home, my school, and we will struggle to get back to where we were, but I'm still so happy right now." She wipes at her eyes. "Especially now that you're here, Max."

Max smiles, though that smile is hampered by the knowledge that two of the people in their group have lost so much. By comparison, she has probably lost the least. Her parents are safe in Seattle and she had no house in Arcadia.

"Enough mushy stuff, you two." Victoria says smiling. "Lets get inside and celebrate a little. We should be watching the news for, say, the next 24 hours or so."

And they did. Once inside, they were glued to the TV looking for any signs of progress on the rescue efforts though most of it was merely repeats of statistics and replays of footage due to lack of any news.

A few hours after they came to the hotel, Max suddenly receives a call from her frantic parents who has been trying to reach her since Thursday night. She had to go outside to try to calm them down and explain she could not come home yet.

She had to tell them she was staying to assist with rescue efforts…something which is not entirely untrue. More importantly, it calms them down to hear her and she promised them she will come home soon…with some friends.

It isn't until late evening that the first news they wanted to hear came. The Prescotts contacted Portland News to inform them that their personal rescue crews have managed to rescue Anderson Berry and his family, Joyce and David Price, and the William Clotts and his family.

The four of them lets out audibly relieved sighs upon hearing Chloe's family had been pulled from the wreckages of Two Whales and Blackwell. Max hugs Chloe as the latter cries a bit knowing she hasn't lost everything.

The news goes on to say all the rescued are being looked at in a hospital in Portland and most are in critical condition but should recover fine. Max makes sure to note down the name of the hospital and gets its number online to contact later.

After this, the news dries up again and they decide to turn in. All of them stay together in the same room as Chloe and Max shares a bed while Victoria and Kate share another.

Perhaps due to the exhaustion of the last few days that never quite went away, Max slept like the dead. When she finally awoke, it is to a brightly lit room and the sound of the news again.

Blinking the remaining dregs of sleep away, she once again finds herself agreeably in the arms of Chloe who is already awake and staring at the TV. Aware when she woke up, she turns to smile warmly at Max and nuzzles her neck making her giggle a bit.

Victoria, who is sitting at the end of the bed in a bathroom having recently showered, looks at them and mock gags.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty." Victoria says. "It's noon time, so you missed breakfast but we saved you some." She points to some bags of take-out on the dresser table. "Hamburgers, fries, and milkshakes. Bon appétit."

"Delicious." Max mumbles yawning a bit. "Thanks."

Kate walks out of the bathroom and sits next to Victoria smiling at Max too. The blonde gets up and goes to stand next to a window looking out.

"I guess this is it, eh?"

It takes a moment but Chloe is the first to respond to Victoria's comment, "Hm? What do you mean?"

"Just that – this is it. Our little adventure is over, isn't it? God, it feels so long ago."

Max untangles herself from Chloe and sits up, "Don't say it like that. It's not like we're never going to see each other again."

"No, it won't. Remember that you're stuck with me." Victoria says. "I lost my fucking best friend and possibly the others too. Oregon has been posting the names of all the rescued from Arcadia and none of the people I know have popped up yet. I still don't have a fucking clue where Taylor and Courtney are. Or any of my club friends. Not a single one is picking up their phones."

She stares at them. "I'll be fucked if I went through all of this and you three then decide to abandon me."

"You guys…" Kate begins. "It's been such a horrible experience seeing what was in that bunker and to go through that storm. I still see those pictures of myself every time I close my eyes and it will take me some time to begin healing."

"I also received something else during this, though. Three people who cares so much about me it hurts. I can become quite attached, you know."

"Christ, guys." Chloe says looking at them from bed. "Am I going to have to give a mushy monologue too? I have no idea how to. I know I'm definitely sticking with one of you-" She glances at Max. "-but the rest of you are cool too. I'll definitely be around to mooch off you."

Max smiles at all of them. "Same here."

"Well, you beat me." Chloe grins. "Wish mine was that short."

"Dork." She laughs. Her expression then falls. "Say, about yesterday…"

Her worried expression gets both Chloe's and Victoria's attention.

"Oh, you mean about your bra?" Victoria asks laughingly. She turns to Kate. "Kate, do you mind? This is a bit embarrassing for Max."

Kate blinks in confusion, but nods. "Alright, I'll go talk with my parents a bit."

Once she leaves the room, Victoria turns serious. "Alright, this is about Sean Prescott, right?"

Max nods. "Yeah, that's what I'm worried about."

"Should we be keeping her in the dark?" Chloe asks gesturing to the door.

"Kate should be left out of it." Victoria says. "It's for her own safety. The less she knows, the less she'll get attention. Frankly, I rather she didn't know about the bunker either."

"I agree." Max says. "Sean Prescott sounds like a real thug. I'm really worried you too, Victoria. You're the most exposed of all of us."

She shakes her head confidently. "He doesn't know my appearance, he didn't see my car, I booked the hotel room using Nathan's credit card, and I used Nathan's phone. I might have to stay away from Arcadia Bay for a while, but without any identifying information, he'll have one hell of a time trying to find me."

"He can get it from Nathan." Chloe says cynically.

"We gave Nathan some very good reasons not to. He genuinely hates his dad, you know. Combined with the need to cover his own ass, I'm sure he won't say a word."

Chloe persists. "And if he decides go against the grain?"

"Then that's where the evidence we're holding comes in. I'm going to keep the physical stuff in storage, but all of us will keep digital copies. _Make sure_ you two keep those safe somewhere and not a place where someone else can steal them."

Max blinks. "Weren't you giving the physical stuff back to Prescott? I'm also a little worried. You're supposed to deal with him one more time and he has had a lot more time now to think up some tricks."

"Deal with him one more time? What are you talking about?"

"Weren't you…going to give back five million and also a note to where Jefferson is?"

Victoria grins. "No, I wasn't. We're keeping all twenty mil, Max. He failed in finding most of the people I named – which, of course, is intentional. I only wanted him to find the Prices; the rest were just there as fluff and to help him fail."

"As for Jefferson, he probably found him already. As soon as he realized what's happening, I guarantee you he sent someone to the bunker to destroy everything and sealed it up. They'll find Jefferson's body there, so that's done with."

She hold's up Nathan's phone. "We're also going to keep this and I'll back up everything on it. I already removed the SIM, though. When he tries to call me…well, he can't."

"Holy shit, that's badass." Chloe grins.

"Right. As for the money, would I be too presumptuous in saying we should do a 33-33-33-1 split? We all get 33% each except for Chloe here who gets 1%."

"Wha-? Why do I only get 1%?"

Victoria stares at her blandly. "Because I get the feeling you and Max are going to be sharing finances in San Francisco."

Chloe blushes. "Ah, you know about that…"

"Yes, I do. So is 33-33-33-1 fair?" She asks. "34% of twenty million is a little under seven million dollars, Chloe."

"I can count!" She bites back. A smile comes onto her face. "Seven mil. Damn. Yeah, I'm cool with that."

"Good. I…might have to use some creative explaining to tell Kate how she suddenly ended up a millionaire, but I'll get to that. Oh, and know this you two. I'm leaving with all the money first. Once I find a way to get it all transferred into something that doesn't require bags to carry, I'll use it to buy stocks, which I'll then use to transfer your share over. When you get it, sell the stocks to get cash, but otherwise, keep it in stocks."

Chloe looks unsure. "Oh, uh, okay."

"You do know what stocks are, don't you?"

"Damn it, yes, I do!"

Victoria rolls her eyes. "If you're sure. If not, my phone is available. Anyway, once that's done, that's be the end of it, though."

Max smiles to them and herself. "Then I guess this really is over then. Thank God."

The thought fills all of them with a sort of muted but still easily felt sense of fulfillment. Later that day, after a long private discussion between Kate and Victoria, the three of them leave the hotel after bidding Kate and the Marsh family good-bye.

Using Victoria's car, they drive towards Seattle to essentially start what is a new chapter in their lives stopping only for food and bathroom breaks.

Along the way, they still check the rearview mirrors for potential Prescott goons and to see the disappearing vestiges of Arcadia Bay.

They chat and discuss their futures. Victoria intends to offer a home to the Marsh family until they can get back on their feet. Max spoke of introducing the long-lost Chloe to the Caulfield family and to have her and her family stay with them. Chloe merely kisses Max in response.

Max thinks of the future and of what it might bring. Of what school she'll need to attend and where she will ultimately end up. Of San Francisco and Chloe. Of Victoria and Kate. Of Blackwell, the Prescotts, and the bunker.

Lulled back into sleep by the movement of the car, Max has a dream. She finds herself back in Arcadia Bay but not one that's been destroyed. Instead, she is surrounded by sprouting vegetation, clear skies, and the familiar sights of many landmarks in the place she once called home and, in a part of her heart, still considers it to be one. The entirety of the destroyed Arcadia Bay has been revived and the sleepy town returned to what it was prior to being destroyed.

A stinging sensation makes her wince and clutches at her chest. A blue light emerges and Max releases her hands in surprise as some sort of orb comes out of her. The orb flies up to her face to reveal itself as a glowing blue butterfly and she remembers it as the one she saw in her first dream.

The creature seems to stare into her eyes searchingly before turning and silently flying away. As it leaves, the light around it only seem to grow and brighten until it encompasses the entire area.

Max covers her eyes until it adjusted to the brightness then looks again. The area now has the shadows of numerous people. Though she could not see anything beyond a silhouette, she somehow knew who each and every person is. In the distance, she could see her parents, her schoolmates, Joyce and David, Victoria, Kate, Warren, and Alyssa. She even sees Mark Jefferson and Nathan Prescott somewhere off to the side.

Out of the light, Chloe suddenly steps out. Walking up to Max, she takes ahold of her hand and smiles at her. Max returns the smile.

The two of them turns towards the people of Arcadia Bay and steps forward.


	12. Author's Notes

**Author's Notes**

So the 150+K word 'Brand New Day' is finally complete. I'll have to tell you all – a feeling of relief went through me when I posted the final chapter. Alongside a feeling of accomplishment, of course.

This story was a long time in waiting. Surprisingly enough, it took almost as long to publish as it did to write and the reason lies entirely with me.

See, this story started out very differently as, I think, many large stories do. It wasn't very different only in plot, characters, details, and much more, but even in its basic premise. Many of the readers who read this story notice some details that remained from the prior story too.

I've gotten quite a few comments that Brand New day seem to have a lot of Chasefield teasing. There's a reason for that – it originally started as a Chasefield. Along the way due to frequent rewrites, touch-ups, and endless changes, it somehow morphed into a Pricefield because I ended up liking my 'Chloe' character so much and wanted more focus on her. In fact, writing this story even changed my character shipping preference from, you guess it, Chasefield to Pricefield.

Strange how that works out.

But that phrase describes a lot of this story. Aside from originally being a Chasefield, it was supposed to only last maybe four to five chapters and take only a few months to write. Instead, it turned into an endeavor lasting over a year long and the end result is an AU retelling of the 'Life is Strange' story that is almost 400 pages long.

I had to create a 'Rachel Amber' character partially from the tidbits of information the game offers, others' perceptions of her, and my own, but the story took so long that the new 'Before The Storm' game is about to come out and give us a real look at Rachel.

Nonetheless, writing BND has definitely been a learning experience. I researched, encountered new techniques to help me write more effectively, discovered how to better overcome my weaknesses as an author, experimented with new styles of writing, and much more.

I rewrote the story enough times to make two separate fanfictions. Then I edited the story enough to write a third. In the process, I gained a whole new respect for professional authors who go through this kind of thing regularly and re-evaluated what I consider 'the writing process'.

I read other fanfics, sometimes the same stories over and over again, for inspiration and writing motivation. Sometimes get frustrated when I received no inspiration, sometimes get surprised when I discovered plot points which I thought were uniquely my own.

At times, I get a horrible attack of procrastination that ends up having me update slowly, but, other times, I get so motivated to write that I could churn out new chapters within days of each other. Some of the longer chapters in BND? They were written in a single day (though later changes/editing took much longer).

I also grew frustrated when my story slowly became vastly more complex and how sometimes it got out of my own control. That is the need to make a sensible story caused me to take the story in a direction that sometimes conflicted with how I created the characters thus requiring me to edit one or the other. Sometimes I had to edit both.

In a way, the story took on a life of its own and became semi-independent. I had to work with it rather than control it like an omnipotent entity.

It is frustrating, but I've come to think it's a natural part of the writing process. If you dedicate enough of yourself to a story, you are giving life to it and allowing it to blossom in its own way.

In any regard, I had fun writing 'Brand New Day' and I hope to contribute more work to the Life is Strange fandom in the future.

Thank you all for reading.


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